On a Charleston, S.C. thread they are licking their lips with anticipation over Boeing... (Seattle: house, tax)

[CarawayDJ]

Originally Posted by mrt144

Simply put though, there is no way WA is ever going to be cheaper in financial costs than other places in the US simply because of how developed our economy is in other industries and the CoL. It's not like Boeing was looking at the Bay Area or NYC metro area for a location. These jobs were gone already, the union just sealed it.

Completely agree. What is going on within America is a microcosm of what you see with the global economy. Some areas will simply not be able to compete and will lose certain types of businesses. Much of my family in NH worked in the long gone mills. There was no way they could match the low costs of doing business in Asia. Those mills now host high-tech companies. This is partially preventable though. It costs a lot to move operations. You don't need to match the low costs of SC or another cheaper state, you just need to reduce costs enough to make it not worthwhile. The one mistake you can't make is to be arrogant enough to think no other area of the country is capable of providing a skilled workforce. I'd wager some of the "No" voters think exactly that. They might have incorrect assumptions about other parts of the country. They need to get out and explore more of the US. They need to drive along I-85 between Greenville and Spartanburg. Maybe if they did that they'd realize there is nothing unique about their talent and skills that can't be found elsewhere.

[DP79]

First the Sonics and now Boeing. Boy, Seattle, you sure know how to f*ck up a good thing.

[loveagrey1]

Originally Posted by PrincessoftheCape

I would not head to Seattle were I you. There are other places just as atmospheric and pretty as this with more robust economies and lower costs of living.

Please tell me your thoughts on where we should go? I am very interested.....We looked at Denver as well but my husband will not be able to obtain employment in his field of work there.....Portland as well....not hiring in his field.....so we narrowed it down to Boise or Seattle...I know....huge differences but still both appealing to us................thanks!

[jm31828]

Originally Posted by loveagrey1

Please tell me your thoughts on where we should go? I am very interested.....We looked at Denver as well but my husband will not be able to obtain employment in his field of work there.....Portland as well....not hiring in his field.....so we narrowed it down to Boise or Seattle...I know....huge differences but still both appealing to us................thanks!

I'm not sure what that poster was mentioning in regards to the economy here- the Seattle metro area economy is one of the most robust in the nation right now, with unemployment down somewhere in the 4% range, which is near what is considered "full employment". The place is in a way booming right now with construction, both residential and business. So for jobs/economy, there are very few better places to be. Cost of living is the only real down side- but that is all up to what one thinks they can afford and in what part of the metro area they are going to live. If you can find a home that fits your budget, then everything else is not really much worse than anywhere else for cost of living. (I know because we moved here 4 years ago from the Midwest)

[loveagrey1]

Originally Posted by jm31828

I'm not sure what that poster was mentioning in regards to the economy here- the Seattle metro area economy is one of the most robust in the nation right now, with unemployment down somewhere in the 4% range, which is near what is considered "full employment". The place is in a way booming right now with construction, both residential and business. So for jobs/economy, there are very few better places to be. Cost of living is the only real down side- but that is all up to what one thinks they can afford and in what part of the metro area they are going to live. If you can find a home that fits your budget, then everything else is not really much worse than anywhere else for cost of living. (I know because we moved here 4 years ago from the Midwest)

Thanks so much jm......that is what I thought and have been reading about Seattle...I was curious what they thought a better place would be in their eyes? Anyway! Again thanks and we are keeping Seattle on our list...................

[PrincessoftheCape]

Originally Posted by loveagrey1

Please tell me your thoughts on where we should go? I am very interested.....We looked at Denver as well but my husband will not be able to obtain employment in his field of work there.....Portland as well....not hiring in his field.....so we narrowed it down to Boise or Seattle...I know....huge differences but still both appealing to us................thanks!

I wouldn't suggest Denver because, like Seattle, Denver is an 'only game in town' regional city, where -- once you eliminate most jobs -- you're just SOL.

I think the east coast, particularly from D.C. to Boston, is both pretty and very active, with an extremely diverse economy. Similarly, the region around Albuquerque is awesome (although, like Denver, somewhat insular).

The Bay Area is expensive, but pretty and has a broader economy than Seattle.

[CarawayDJ]

Not directly related to this topic, but close enough. When compiling a list about what an area might do to attract new business and keep existing business....you probably wouldn't add electing a socialist to the city council to the list It's freaking hilarious to read on the same page about Seattle being designated America's smartest city AND that a socialist won a seat on the city council. Although not Everett or a direct impact to Boeing, I doubt it gives any businesses a warm and fuzzy feeling that an area has people who would actually elect a socialist. Too funny...and sad.

[jjinla]

The area between DC and MA is the most expensive region in the country, with absolutely ridiculous taxes. On top if an income tax and a 8.5% tax, property taxes on my 2400 sq ft home built in 1968 on a 8k lot were $24k a year! Unless you work on Wall Street the COL increase in the NE will always be way higher than your salary bump. Seattle has more than enough skilled workers to carry on the economy, but yeah the IAM are fools.

At least their members can get jobs at SeaTac for $15 an hour though.

[eskercurve]

Originally Posted by jjinla

At least their members can get jobs at SeaTac for $15 an hour though.

Not 10,000 of them ...

The reality is, the machinists are the least transferable in their skills. Some will be picked up by other companies for sure, but many of the tasks I see the IAM guys doing are hand touch labor which other industries are abandoning left and right. Printed products will be the death knell of touch labor in the United States. Highly automated factories make up much of manufacturing now, which makes Boeing behind the times. I remember taking a tour of a Caterpillar plant in IL back in 2004. In a factory that spans 410,000 sq. ft, men unload raw materials, but after that, machines melt the material, cast the parts, machine them, sort them, put them on pallets and inventory them, do QA on them, deliver the parts to refined machines the size of two story homes that move and make the more complicated machining jobs, then are put on an assembly line where robots assembled the machines, which were front loaders, and then finally, a man at the end plugged in the computers (took about 5 minutes) and drove off with it to do some tests on it, which took about an hour, and he was done.

That's it. Maybe 20 people in the whole plant.

And this was 200-freaking-4.

Lean manufacturing at Boeing is a joke currently, and there's plenty of room for improvement. Airbus' plants are highly automated and that's why the A team can kill Boeing on price. The fact they have amenable loans is irrelevant, to be perfectly honest. Younger pilots prefer Airbus planes too.

Anyway, if the IAM guys got out of their bubble and saw what the rest of the nation is doing in terms of manufacturing, they would be crapping their pants and begging Boeing for the contract terms they offered, which were way more generous than the company had any obligation to offer.

Oh, I know they will strike in 2016. They will act like idiots again. They will cry and moan and complain, the company will give in, and only appease them long enough to lay them all off so they can kiss their jobs good bye. The engineers will leave, retire, or go for other companies. Some suppliers will stay. Many will leave. Airbus won't set up shop here. Too expensive. Labor market is too full of spoiled rotten children. Maybe they'll hire some of the engineers.

But hey, the machinists can "hold their heads high" for "standing up for what they believe in." Tell that to the young mechanics and machinists who wanted to work, but won't be able to once Boeing leaves their sorry union behind and no looking back. I hope their pride fills their bellies and puts a roof over their heads.

[loveagrey1]

Originally Posted by PrincessoftheCape

I wouldn't suggest Denver because, like Seattle, Denver is an 'only game in town' regional city, where -- once you eliminate most jobs -- you're just SOL.

I think the east coast, particularly from D.C. to Boston, is both pretty and very active, with an extremely diverse economy. Similarly, the region around Albuquerque is awesome (although, like Denver, somewhat insular).

The Bay Area is expensive, but pretty and has a broader economy than Seattle.

I appreciate your opinions and already lived in Washington DC and no desire to go back and Boston...weather much too bad....plus three of my good friends living there just got out for various reasons...anyway, we have our hearts set on the PNW....so......we may explore Albq......we are running for the "hot" summers though and they are much too warm for us.....Thanks again.