POLL: NEPA Youth---Staying or Leaving?

[Mr Yuk]

Originally Posted by untuchableface

You're right - there is nothing there for me with my masters... well not NOTHING, but the salaries elsewhere are just too hard to pass up.
.

Salaries elsewhere may be higher, but so are home prices. In many markets, its almost impossible to own your own home (at least one with more than one bedroom and some kind of yard and is detached) even with a salary that looks great.

You can live much better in NEPA on $30,000 a year than you can in New Jersey, Maryland, Philadelphia, New York, DC, etc making $80,000 a year.

[sleeplessinpa]

Scranton:

I knew it would not happen. My son and daughter just finished college and could not find work here. My son finally got a Computer Programing job in Allentown but at a start salary lower than the $50,000 he expected. He will get the experience and then leave for Portland Orgean.

My daughter can't find a job in Graphic Design she too will have to leave.

She got an offer with Clipper Magazine in Lancaster for $10 an hour! LOL right with 4 years college and bills she could not live on that!
Can you imagine going to school for 4 years and then being offered that little when you have college loans to pay,rent, a car payment, etc.etc.

In truth there is nothing for the young here in Tech jobs THEY HAVE TO LEAVE!

I do not blame them.

[Baltic_Celt]

Originally Posted by go phillies

Salaries elsewhere may be higher, but so are home prices. In many markets, its almost impossible to own your own home (at least one with more than one bedroom and some kind of yard and is detached) even with a salary that looks great.

You can live much better in NEPA on $30,000 a year than you can in New Jersey, Maryland, Philadelphia, New York, DC, etc making $80,000 a year.

Very good point. I've know several who raised families on that amount in the W-B area & although they didn't have excess for fancy vacations or brand new cars, they were living quite comfortably & nicely, owned their own homes & had used cars & vans for the family. Nice to drive home from work in 10-min, as well.

[SteelCityRising]

For what it's worth, I don't understand how an area where everyone cries "poverty" the way Scranton/Wilkes-Barre does could have such a proliferation of higher-end vehicles. I'm not only talking about the upper-crust areas like the Abingtons or Back Mountain either---even country roads and inner-city streets are starting to get lined with newer vehicles that should be "out-of-reach" if you're truly "struggling" in our area. It seems like my 1999 Ford Contour, which is only eight years old, is now a "dinosaur" by local standards. I'm earning $10/hr. and made about $14,000 last year, and I can't afford a new vehicle. Therefore, if the rest of the region is tooling around in BMWs, Audis, Lexuses, etc., they MUST be earning a hefty salary, right? Do that many people honestly power-commute to Manhattan, or are people in debt up to their eyeballs? A better question even yet to ask would be why so many people around here ***** about being "poor" when the thousands of McMansions popping up everywhere with shiny "toys" adorning the driveways suggest otherwise? Are people struggling to make ends meat, or are they just struggling to keep up with the Jones's?

[DeLorean]

I don't know... when ever I drive down the South cross valley expressway, I probably see 100 cars, and probably fewer than 10 are newer than 2000... we have a running gag that when ever you drive down the Xvalley, you will see at LEAST 10 Buick centuries or chevy cavaliers.

Granted, you do see some newer cars, but drive around Nanticoke or Wilkes-barre, the cars that are parked around the houses there are generally not new cars, and if they are new, you are talking subaru impreza's, ford fusions, pontiac G6's, that sort of thing. now exactly many new Mercedes S600's parked around Nanticoke! though there is some crazy lady that lives in Plymouth and drives a Cadillac Escalade... SO tacky, and uses so much gas. has big wheels and a window banner that reads "Escalady" you can buy a cheap house and an expensive car, but I guess no amount of money buys you good taste?

[cjseliga]

Originally Posted by ScrantonWilkesBarre

I'm earning $10/hr. and made about $14,000 last year, and I can't afford a new vehicle.

Paul, don't worry, once you graduate you'll be making a lot more money. One of my former co-workers at the University of Arizona has a husband whose an accountant. He graduated from the UofA with an accounting degree in December of 2003 and was hired by the national accounting firm, Clifton Gunderson in February of '04, I think he started at $37,000. He does auditing for the company and travels all over the country for them to do audits for their clients, mostly credit unions and non-publicly traded companies.

Now, three years later and he's making over $60,000 and just finished getting his MBA (which they paid for) and eventually wants to get his CPA. I think people that become parters in accounting firms with their CPA could make $95,000 to well over $100,000 a year. And his salary might even be a little low with him living in AZ, so I'm sure you'll be able to have your choice of jobs once you graduate from King's.

You know, maybe you should try and live somewhere else, Boston, Hoboken, Chicago after you graduate and see what it's like in other places. I know your passionate about the area and want it to succeed. It will always be here for you to come back to. I don't know if you're worried that if you move to some other place that you'll like that place better than here and you might never want to come back, only to visit your family. Who knows what will happen. You can always come back after 5 or 10 years and start your own accounting firm in the Electric City.

[Baltic_Celt]

I see a mix of cars when I visit the area, but I too, have noticed the huge amount of higher end vehicles tooling around Kingston, Luzerne, W-B & in particular, parked at the WV Mall. There are also a number of high end car dealers in the WV Mall area, which surprised me, as I too thought "Who can afford these cars?" Someone must, otherwise the lots couldn't survive. Perhaps all the NJ/NY-ers who've retired to the area after selling their expensive homes? I've noticed 20/30-somethings with expensive cars, as well, but I was wondering if they rented apts/homes, which is still very modest in comparison to most cities & can therefore handle higher car payments? Perhaps they're living at home? Have many roommates? Not sure, just notice it every time I'm there... VV

[Baltic_Celt]

Originally Posted by cjseliga

Paul, don't worry, once you graduate you'll be making a lot more money. One of my former co-workers at the University of Arizona has a husband whose an accountant. He graduated from the UofA with an accounting degree in December of 2003 and was hired by the national accounting firm, Clifton Gunderson in February of '04, I think he started at $37,000. He does auditing for the company and travels all over the country for them to do audits for their clients, mostly credit unions and non-publicly traded companies.

Now, three years later and he's making over $60,000 and just finished getting his MBA (which they paid for) and eventually wants to get his CPA. I think people that become parters in accounting firms with their CPA could make $95,000 to well over $100,000 a year. And his salary might even be a little low with him living in AZ, so I'm sure you'll be able to have your choice of jobs once you graduate from King's.

You know, maybe you should try and live somewhere else, Boston, Hoboken, Chicago after you graduate and see what it's like in other places. I know your passionate about the area and want it to succeed. It will always be here for you to come back to. I don't know if you're worried that if you move to some other place that you'll like that place better than here and you might never want to come back, only to visit your family. Who knows what will happen. You can always come back after 5 or 10 years and start your own accounting firm in the Electric City.

Excellent points, CJ.

Glad your husband is doing so well, almost doubling salary in a few years. He should teach a class on how to do that. I've greatly missed that info somewhere along my path.

I love good news. Good for both of you... VV

[Mr Yuk]

Originally Posted by ScrantonWilkesBarre

or are people in debt up to their eyeballs? A better question even yet to ask would be why so many people around here ***** about being "poor" when the thousands of McMansions popping up everywhere with shiny "toys" adorning the driveways suggest otherwise? Are people struggling to make ends meat, or are they just struggling to keep up with the Jones's?

Bingo, SWB. You hit the nail on the head. This area, like probably everywhere else, is overrun with rampant materialism and greed, and of course, debt up to their eyeballs. There's no other way to explain the hordes of luxury SUV's and McMansions with an area with one of the lowest average incomes in the nation.