Should I move to the Orlando area with no job? (Tampa: apartment, lease)

[nep321]

After years of thought and research, I think I am going to make the move to the Orlando area next month. I have only driven through the area, but I have been to Florida numerous times, in the Tampa, St. Petersburg, Ormond Beach and Daytona areas. Like most people from Connecticut, I have a very comfortable idea of what Florida is like, so I'm confident in my choice. I'm a 28 year old single, gay white male. I don't think south FL would be of interest to me, because of it's extremely high population density, fast pace, cost of living, and more Latin feel.

I am leaning toward Orlando because I want to be in a much larger metropolitan area than Hartford, CT. There are 1 million more people there and I believe it would be better for a young single professional who wants the opportunity to develop a larger social network. Of course, feel free to tell me if I'm wrong. I also love hot weather and think anything under 70 is cold. I'm also severely deficient in Vitamin D, so being in a place with more sunshine would be helpful. And, it would only be a 3-hour flight to Hartford to visit family a few times a year. I also choose Orlando because it's rather suburban in character, and not overdone with skyscrapers. I love driving a car and hate public transit. I am not huge beach person, but it's nice that the beach is only an hour's drive away. And the gay community there is much larger than it is here in Hartford. Also, I want more affordable housing and want to live in a slightly slower paced metro area than Hartford.

So, here's the dilema. I am planning to move there sometime next month, with no job secured. However, I feel rather confident that I can find something within a reasonable amount of time. I mean, I have a master's in accounting with 5 years of experience in taxation. Also, I believe I have the financial resources to make it a reality. I will have about $26,000 saved up in cash, as well as $13,000 in stocks, which are highly liquid and easy to sell, just in case of emergency. Ideally, my goal is to be left with at least $20,000 once I secure employment. So I have $6,000 to play with. I have no debt, car is paid off, and no children.

My plan is to quit my job here within a few weeks and have U-Box or PODS ship my belongings into a storage depot somewhere in or near Orlando, then drive down with my car and stay in a hotel until I find a short-term apartment. Then, I will live in the short-term apartment while looking for a job via recruiters, LinkedIn and networking. I am an excellent interviewer and have never had a problem finding employment, even in this bad economy. Once the job is secured, I will move into a long-term apartment and move all my stuff out of the storage depot and into the apartment.

What do you think of this plan? Is it reasonable? Too risky? I mean, recruiters and employers won't even talk to people who apply to jobs from long distances. It's like I have to be there first, then look for a job.

[annerk]

You need to have openings to have interviews, and right now this area is over-saturated with accountants and definitely not enough jobs in the field to go around.

You might get lucky, but I don't know that you'll find something before you blow through a lot more than $6K. it can be hard for an outsider to find a job in this area. Many jobs aren't even advertised and are only filled by word of mouth, not having a local network will be a huge detriment to your job hunt.

[nep321]

Originally Posted by annerk

You need to have openings to have interviews, and right now this area is over-saturated with accountants and definitely not enough jobs in the field to go around.

You might get lucky, but I don't know that you'll find something before you blow through a lot more than $6K. it can be hard for an outsider to find a job in this area. Many jobs aren't even advertised and are only filled by word of mouth, not having a local network will be a huge detriment to your job hunt.

Yeah that's unfortunate. It seems that there are barely any tax accounting jobs in the area, except for public accounting firms, which I don't want to do because they make you work crazy hours. But damn, I really want to move there. My lease here ends next month, so I have to decide fast.

[hgebel]

I tend to agree with Annerk, especially if you are going into a saturated career field. The only thing that would make me say otherwise is the fact that you don't have any debt or family obligations. Without those two things you can make $6,000 go a long way if you can stick to a budget (and I mean really stick to it). If you are willing to take unskilled work (and aren't picky about it; there aren't even very many unskilled jobs with a lot of availability around here, but there are a few fields that always have openings because not many people want to do them) while waiting you could certainly extend your search indefinitely. Of course, depending on how much you are willing to dip into the $20,000 you can also extend your search time quite a bit.

I know you say you hate public transit, but a monthly bus pass is $50 and can allow you to get around town a lot without using your car. Even still driving quite a bit, I have cut my car expenses over $100 per month by commuting on Lynx most days; despite my commute time increasing significantly I find that I have actually gained an hour of productive time every day because I can read (or sleep) on the bus rather than concentrating on my driving. Note that I'm not saying you should use Lynx once you have a permanent position if you prefer driving, I'm just pointing out that it is available and could help you stretch out your $6000 quite a bit while still covering a lot of ground. And, of course, you will still have your car when you need it due to time constraints or exploring places not the Lynx system. Speaking of cars, make sure you budget for the surprisingly large costs of transferring your registration to Florida.

I have a lot of gay co-workers, and I get the impression they find the area quite friendly (I have no idea how Connecticut is in that regard). Certainly the gay community here is much larger (or at least more visible) than when I lived in Delaware. I also have the impression that the gay community here is much more outgoing and open than in Delaware, possibly because they are more accepted by the population as whole here than back home.

-Harry

[americandreamdead]

Yes, please do.

We need an increase in our 25% unofficial unemployment rate.

And we also need more people holding signs on our street corners.

Welcome to town.

[PDF]

So what happened to Phoenix? Isn't this the same situation?

[nep321]

Originally Posted by PDF

So what happened to Phoenix? Isn't this the same situation?

Well, I have ultimately determined that FL would be better for me, because it would be so much easier to hop on a plane for a 3-hour direct flight to visit family up in CT. It's also more gay friendly overall and doesn't get extreme heat like Phoenix. But now people are telling me that the unemployment situation is horrible in Orlando, as well as traffic and crime. The latest FL unemployment rate is down to 8.8%, which is better than CT's 9.0%. Of course, both are worse than the national average of 7.8%.

I also have some friends and family in FL and have visited there many times, so I feel more comfortable with the transition an would be more likely to stay longer term.

[PDF]

Originally Posted by nep321

Well, I have ultimately determined that FL would be better for me, because it would be so much easier to hop on a plane for a 3-hour direct flight to visit family up in CT. It's also more gay friendly overall and doesn't get extreme heat like Phoenix. But now people are telling me that the unemployment situation is horrible in Orlando, as well as traffic and crime. The latest FL unemployment rate is down to 8.8%, which is better than CT's 9.0%. Of course, both are worse than the national average of 7.8%.

I also have some friends and family in FL and have visited there many times, so I feel more comfortable with the transition an would be more likely to stay longer term.

I'm not sure how the weather is in AZ, but here in Florida I cannot take the humidity. Although I'm sure it doesn't even compare to the desert climate. Can't wait to be moving. Yes, things aren't any better here than they are in Phoenix in terms of unemployment and everything else.

I was just curious. You have to do what is best for yourself, good luck.

[kyle19125]

This area is somewhat gay-friendly but I wouldn't rank it high on the overall scale as a gay male myself. Furthermore the job market here is dreadful, particularly for full-time professionals. South Florida is where you should focus in my opinion and unfortunately you have a bit of a skewed/generalized view of the entire South Florida region. West Palm Beach/Palm Beach County would be a good option for you, as it doesn't have the congestion of points further south and is very gay-friendly with a more varied age demographic versus Orlando which tends towards the "twink" population. I'm a Florida native, having grown up in South Florida and having lived in Orlando/Central Florida for nearly 10 years overall. Feel free to direct message for more specifics. Good luck!

[totsuka]

Consider Houston Tx or at least take a quick trip to there before moving. The weather is similar but the economy is much better there than here and going forward it will remain much better there.