would I be able to live on 13 to 15 thousand without the fear of going broke... (Tampa: real estate, apartment complexes)

[d-fens]

until I was able to find some sort of job in Tampa? Realistically, I have been able to still save money in the money vacuum of the DC metro on only a 28 thousand dollar a year salary. This is just something I am trying to base a decision on because I am interviewing for a position in the DC area and they only want to pay me a little more than what I make now, but my other choice was to just move to Florida (other areas besides Tampa have been considered, and even other states such as NYC and NJ, which I know I would go broke in)

[BucFan]

on ramen noodles, yes.

seriously, with a roommate and living within your means, you should be able to -

also, don't get sick unless you have health insurance.

public transportation isn't very good here - and the city is relatively spread out - so live near your work, if possible.

[craigm1841]

wow. I couldn't. If you choose to, good luck. You should be able to live on 15K here just as well if not better then in DC for 28K.

[d-fens]

well, I may have misled you with my post. I mean I will have around 13 to 15 thousand saved up. I would have no job in the area. I guess in a month, my expenses here are $735 rent (this is for a room of a house mind you), for utilities it has ended up being anywhere between $120 - $150, my cell phone was $66, etc. I spend about $50 - $70 a week on groceries, $40 or so every 10 days filling up my tank. So monthly I spend about $1300 here and with my two jobs I make about maybe $2100 after taxes, maybe a little more. I have still been able to save money.

The job I am interviewing for in Northern Virginia would pay $33000 which I still feel is very low for someone with a Masters degree. I also do not know if I would be able to keep my second job if I take this one. If I am offered, I am going to try to see if they would give me at least something in the mid to high 30k range. Fact of the matter is I really don't like the area here and have been wanting to get out.

[craigm1841]

wow. 33K I feel is low for someone with a masters. I guess it depends on your field.

if you have 13-15K saved up, you are better off then 99% of Americans. What industry are you in AND what is your degree in?

If you moved here with 13-15K and got a job right away, you would be doing GREAT. (you could probably live on that for 8 months or so, but why burn through it) I moved here with less then $1000 but I also had a high-income job lined up.

EDIT: If you have good credit, a lot of apartment complexes will waive your deposit. You could essentially move in somewhere for 1st months rent. Brighthouse will set up your cable/internet/phone for free, and the bill will be $100 a month. Coming from DC, you will see your insurance drop, maybe a little. FL is pretty high car insurance. You can rent an OKAY place for 700 a month one bedroom. garbage will be 500 a month, top of the line brand new would run you about $1100 a month.

Tampa isnt neccessarily cheap, but there isnt a large gap between living crappy and living nice. bottom of the barrel apartments might be $500 while top of the line is $1100 (one bedroom). I think in DC the numbers would be more like $800 - $5000 for one bedroom housing.

[seain dublin]

Sorry 13K to 15K isn't a lot of money. And money has way of going out faster when nothing is coming in.

I don't know if your the same person from DC who posted before about moving to Tampa. Have you thought about NC? More opportunity and more cost effective than the DC area.

If you get the job in Northern Virginia couldn't you move out of metro DC and maybe get a roomate?

Sounds like it took you awhile to save up what you did and I applaud you for being so frugal. But the thing is when the 13K becomes 6K and there is no job on the horizon in Tampa, then what?

I can tell you right off the bat the car insurance is going to increase, and you will be spending more on gas, there really is no mass transit.

JMO, but if you get the NV job you just increased your income by 5K a year, don't know what you do,but the salaries here for the most part are lower.

Unless you have a job lined up here to move and watch your money dwindle would be very stressful.

[algia]

How about take the Virginia job, isn't there potential for salary increase? I mean they just start you at 33k.......with your masters, there is a chance that if you're good at what you do and don't have a rotten attitude that they will increase that number over some time, save up some more and then look at maybe transfer options.....why be hasty and end up sorry later? and blow your savings....I would never blow savings on a move....

[d-fens]

Well, the reason I want to leave is I hate the area here. I'm not very fond of the people in the northern va or dc area, and either way it is expensive to live unless I move far out into Virginia. I really don't see them increasing my pay by much. On my current job after a year, they only gave me a $700 raise and I did a very good job for them. The field I am working in is college athletics. I work usually a lot more than 40 hours a week (more like 50-70) and on top of that I have a second job. I most likely would be working more hours on this job, and I still don't know if I would be able to quit my second job. I know this will probably **** someone off, but another thing is I hate cold weather. I don't care to live somewhere that is cold 9 months out of the year. I actually have made some contacts with people in Tampa and that is why I have considered moving there. Of course I interview for the position today so all this may be of non issue if I don't get it, which means I would probably leave this area indefinitely. As far as how long it took me to save the money, probably over a course of about a year and a half or so. When I lived in NJ, I got a lot of commission bonuses which I saved instead of blowing on stupid things like most people my age. I also looked at everything as a means to an end and always have had my eyes on getting somewhere warmer.

[tilli]

In better times, I would say go for it. But if you do not have a job lined up, this is a really bad time to move to Tampa. I would hate to see your hard-earned savings evaporate when you can't find a job.

As for the climate - you are focused on the lack of cold, but have you really considered that instead we get 9 months of intense heat and humidity? The numbers may not look so bad, but those 93º temps feel much hotter due to the humidity and the strength of the sun, and there really is no break whatsoever from those conditions during the hot season. At this time of year, most people who grew up in a temperate climate are dreaming of changing leaves and fall cooling, and at best you will only get a tiny taste of that here. It can be a very difficult adjustment.

[imagardener]

You need to be prepared to earn much less in Florida than you have been earning in DC and that means forever. Also DC has stable employment that radiates outward from the US government. Very little affected by recession.

But having said that if you want warm weather then life is too short to worry about money entirely. If you want something then you will find way to make it work. But be warned that a lot of people want to live in Florida and the pay scales here are low even for highly credentialed professionals.

Florida may take a decade to recover from the real estate fall out because the economy in the state is basically real estate and tourism. And tourism jobs pay minimum wage (service industry).

If you have a safety net (family to fall back on) then go for it. Be resourceful, get roommates, start a business you can do off-hours (not lawn service lol that's what every Tom Dick and unskilled Harry does). Do something aimed at the 65 plus crowd, their income has not been as affected as others.
Get certified in the physical therapy field, that's the main recreation here along with doctor visits and eating out.

Good luck.