Possible Move to Area..Need realistic feedback (Sacramento, Yuba City: rentals, how much)

[skkydreemer]

Hello...here's the deal. I live in lower Michigan. I have several years of accounting experience and a BBA in accounting. I have been considering moving to a town north of Sacramento where my in-laws are so that I can have the option of commuting to Sacramento. The jobs in Michigan are grim, very grim. I see tons of accounting jobs posted for the Sacramento area daily on indeed.com, compared to the handful that are here. However, I have also found through research that the economy isn't the greatest in CA. I have two choices, stay in Michigan with NO job opportunities, or take my chances and sell my home to start over in a state 2000 miles away, it's a risky move. I have grown to HATE the cold winters that I have endured all of my life. I have read that there may be more jobs, but there is much competition in CA. I have no interest in moving to southern CA, I will need support of in-laws for child care and such. So, if any of you could provide feedback of the realistic job outlook in the accounting field and what my chances are I welcome your thoughts. It appears that the jobs pay more, which would in turn pay for the higher cost of housing. I have been there on visits and so far that is the only thing that I see more expensive, about 50% higher than my area for rentals. I need to get as much information as I can before deciding to leave my home and drag our family across the US for what may or may not work. I am trying to find out what the risks really are. Thank you in advance for your input.

[caligirlz]

Originally Posted by skkydreemer

Hello...here's the deal. I live in lower Michigan.

I have several years of accounting experience and a BBA in accounting. I have been considering moving to a town north of Sacramento where my in-laws are so that I can have the option of commuting to Sacramento. The jobs in Michigan are grim, very grim. I see tons of accounting jobs posted for the Sacramento area daily on indeed.com, compared to the handful that are here.

However, I have also found through research that the economy isn't the greatest in CA.

I have two choices, stay in Michigan with NO job opportunities, or take my chances and sell my home to start over in a state 2000 miles away, it's a risky move. I have grown to HATE the cold winters that I have endured all of my life.

I have read that there may be more jobs, but there is much competition in CA. I have no interest in moving to southern CA, I will need support of in-laws for child care and such. So, if any of you could provide feedback of the realistic job outlook in the accounting field and what my chances are I welcome your thoughts.

It appears that the jobs pay more, which would in turn pay for the higher cost of housing. I have been there on visits and so far that is the only thing that I see more expensive, about 50% higher than my area for rentals. I need to get as much information as I can before deciding to leave my home and drag our family across the US for what may or may not work. I am trying to find out what the risks really are. Thank you in advance for your input.

I can't specifically speak for accounting, but I would suggest that you take a look at the thread I started on healthcare jobs, and apply the job search suggestions to accounting.

I personally would not move here without a job, unless you family can support you, or you make enough profit from selling your home, to hold you until yo do find a job.

[ryuns]

Would it be unreasonable to try to get a job before you move? If you gather that you'll need to be in the area to get the types of jobs you're looking for, could you move temporarily and stay with the in-laws for a while until you find something? Would be a bummer to be away from the family for that amount of time, but it seems worse to move everyone out and risk not finding a fulfilling or well-paying job.

Edit to add: I really like it here, and the economy's looking up and all, but I just don't think I'd hazard a move anywhere without someone in my family having a job lined up.

[calnbs]

I'm going to agree with the two above posts. Don't come here unless you already have a job waiting. Come here for a month or two for a visit and try to see if you can get a few job interviews and see how it goes first before selling everything.

[enigma99a]

I agree that it might be good to do some applying from where you are at before you move. Maybe use your relatives address so you appear local. And if you get an interview, fly out.

As for the winters, I don't know how you do it. This winter in Sacramento only lasted 1 week in early December where we failed to hit 60F and were back in the low 70s by Christmas, 82F by Jan 24. Now at March 7th, it's looking like Summer will arrive next weekend with some hot weather. I love it

[2sleepy]

You might look at the State of California website for accounting jobs, they hire lots of accountants: https://forms.spb.ca.gov/bulletins/e...t&loc=0&dept=0 The job titles are a bit vague, accounting trainee requires a Bachelor's degree and I don't think anyone without experience can place high enough on the eligibility list to get an interview. My son applied and he didn't have to take an exam, but a 'self assessment' online which asked questions about his experience, etc. I am not sure if that has changed- it was 4 or 5 years ago.

[skkydreemer]

I appreciate all of your advice. What I really need to know about is the job market in my field. All I can do at this point is research online, I get mixed reviews and conflicting information. I came to this forum in order to get a realistic outlook on the job market.

[2sleepy]

Unless you run into an accountant on this forum I don't think you are going to get the answer you are looking for. You might want to call one of the accountant hiring agencies in the area, like Robert Half. They will generally give you an honest opinion of what the market is like.

[jmgloss]

Originally Posted by skkydreemer

Hello...here's the deal. I live in lower Michigan. I have several years of accounting experience and a BBA in accounting. I have been considering moving to a town north of Sacramento where my in-laws are so that I can have the option of commuting to Sacramento. The jobs in Michigan are grim, very grim. I see tons of accounting jobs posted for the Sacramento area daily on indeed.com, compared to the handful that are here. However, I have also found through research that the economy isn't the greatest in CA. I have two choices, stay in Michigan with NO job opportunities, or take my chances and sell my home to start over in a state 2000 miles away, it's a risky move. I have grown to HATE the cold winters that I have endured all of my life. I have read that there may be more jobs, but there is much competition in CA. I have no interest in moving to southern CA, I will need support of in-laws for child care and such. So, if any of you could provide feedback of the realistic job outlook in the accounting field and what my chances are I welcome your thoughts. It appears that the jobs pay more, which would in turn pay for the higher cost of housing. I have been there on visits and so far that is the only thing that I see more expensive, about 50% higher than my area for rentals. I need to get as much information as I can before deciding to leave my home and drag our family across the US for what may or may not work. I am trying to find out what the risks really are. Thank you in advance for your input.

My husband and I moved from Yuba City CA to Houghton Lake MI 5 years ago, but we are retired so no job issues there. I would not recommend you come to CA without a job waiting for you. My husband worked in Sacramento for YEARS and lost his job in the 2008 crash, but he could take early SS retirement so we were ok in MI. Lost our house in the mess though. Only stayed in MI for one year as we misjudged how much we would miss our kids. Now that we are back on the West Coast, THEY have moved to TN. Go figure. We could NOT afford to live again in CA so are in Oregon now and unhappy. CA is a wonderful place to live, but schools and taxes and the lack of jobs makes it extremely difficult to relocate into the state. THINK VERY CAREFULLY BEFORE YOU MAKE A VERY LONG MOVE.