All amenities in a smaller town close to the beach (Jacksonville: insurance, unemployment)

[TriMT7]

Wow, amazing hyperbole all over this thread. Great job as usual C-D!


(BTW, the average wage in Florida is actually about $20/hr., though there certainly are plenty of $12/hr jobs in low-to-no-skilled positions for which there is a lot of demand).

[THX 1138]

Salaries are probably the highest in Southeast Florida, but it's also the most expensive part of the state to live in. Elsewhere it's all relative, salaries are even lower. Again it all depends on luck, field of work and typically who know you (Florida has rampant nepotism and cronyism). It's not uncommon to see people who have no qualifications getting promoted in the workplace here with little or no merit, also with minimal to no experience.

There are parts of Florida that are slow paced and etc, but SE Florida is not that, things change from around Jupiter FL north, you can go inland here, Belle Glade, Pahokee, but these are high crime areas, lot's of Poverty almost reminds me of parts of Georgia and again no jobs other than the Sugar industry.

You can probably find something but you have to learn to make a lot of sacrifices to meet ends meet. It all depends on what your goals, standards of living and etc. are.

You can live anywhere you want practically, if you are willing to make those sacrifices and give up your creature comforts.

[THX 1138]

Originally Posted by TriMT7

Wow, amazing hyperbole all over this thread. Great job as usual C-D!


(BTW, the average wage in Florida is actually about $20/hr., though there certainly are plenty of $12/hr jobs in low-to-no-skilled positions for which there is a lot of demand).

Those are the averages, but on average the jobs paying those salaries have not come back since the downturn, these are people who remained employed. Also raises have remained quite flat and in some instances, personally over the past 5 years, I have had salary freezes, and only a 3% raise total since 2008, salaries are going in reverse for people who lost their jobs. My neighbors wife was making over the average prior to 2008, she got hit in downsizing and lost her job, now she works for $11/hr, college degree and 20 years of experience. She was told numerous times she was "over-qualified" for the positions she was applying or interviewing for.

Another neighbor use to work in in West Palm Beach, he know works down in Sunrise for less than he made 5 years ago, he got hit with layoffs and had no choice other than leaving the area, but with 2 kids in school he did not want to uproot his family.

The average salary in Mississippi is $35K/year, but I do not see 1 bedroom apartments for $1200/month either or a equally high cost of living. Given that PB County has an average salary of $21/hr, that's pretty pathetic compared to the high cost of living here.

Again don't take my word for it, just look at what thousands of other people say:

http://www.google.com/#sclient=psy-a...w=1280&bih=716

[CarrieBanks]

Originally Posted by TriMT7

Wow, amazing hyperbole all over this thread. Great job as usual C-D!


(BTW, the average wage in Florida is actually about $20/hr., though there certainly are plenty of $12/hr jobs in low-to-no-skilled positions for which there is a lot of demand).

It's good to know that there are plenty of jobs that do offer a $12/hr salary as not everyone is lucky enough to make the $20 an hour which is astronomical. Here in GA if one person is making at least $12hr alone and upwards then you're doing pretty good especially for a small town. I guess I am now starting to learn some differences between GA and FL the more I read.

[CarrieBanks]

Originally Posted by THX 1138

Those are the averages, but on average the jobs paying those salaries have not come back since the downturn, these are people who remained employed. Also raises have remained quite flat and in some instances, personally over the past 5 years, I have had salary freezes, and only a 3% raise total since 2008, salaries are going in reverse for people who lost their jobs. My neighbors wife was making over the average prior to 2008, she got hit in downsizing and lost her job, now she works for $11/hr, college degree and 20 years of experience. She was told numerous times she was "over-qualified" for the positions she was applying or interviewing for.

Another neighbor use to work in in West Palm Beach, he know works down in Sunrise for less than he made 5 years ago, he got hit with layoffs and had no choice other than leaving the area, but with 2 kids in school he did not want to uproot his family.

The average salary in Mississippi is $35K/year, but I do not see 1 bedroom apartments for $1200/month either or a equally high cost of living. Given that PB County has an average salary of $21/hr, that's pretty pathetic compared to the high cost of living here.

Again don't take my word for it, just look at what thousands of other people say:

Google

It is scary to hear of such personal experiences whereby you and people who you know have been hit since the downturn. I am beginning to think that it might all be just a matter of luck more than anything else, unless of course you have a ton of money to move there with and not have to worry about anything, which not everyone can afford to do.

[THX 1138]

Originally Posted by CarrieBanks

It is scary to hear of such personal experiences whereby you and people who you know have been hit since the downturn. I am beginning to think that it might all be just a matter of luck more than anything else, unless of course you have a ton of money to move there with and not have to worry about anything, which not everyone can afford to do.

That's only the half of it, figure in what unemployment pays in Florida, if you lose your job....a maximum of $275/week, which is based on your salary you can get less if you made less. My friend could not collect because Motorola gave him a severance and he landed a job in CA before it ran out, he is lucky...some people get no severance and are tossed out with little savings and try paying your rent on that, say in my area where a 1 bedroom can cost you $1K/+ month. Nothing left over to pay for anything else = ticket to eviction.

The downturn has created a lot of unemployed, some have given up looking for work and are still surviving because someone else in the household is able to keep them treading water. Many bought their homes years back and have low payments. Some who bought during the boom are losing their homes or already lost them.

It's an interesting mix, a lot of people left and many that are moving here now are retirees, there just isn't much job creation to offset the ones that were lost prior. Employers are very picky, because they can be, plenty of people looking for a job. This makes getting a job more difficult if not impossible for some who have gaps in employment or long term job loss.

A "ton of money" is right, and also confidence you will find a job, that's a chance you take and for many the only way to get here is to move here, at one time when unemployment was 3-4%, that might have been a logical risk, but now it would be even riskier....

[Petunka]

Have you considered any suburbs around Jacksonville, Orlando or Tampa?The job market should be kinder in those cities plus offer other amenities are looking for. But you may need 2nd car.

[CarrieBanks]

Originally Posted by Petunka

Have you considered any suburbs around Jacksonville, Orlando or Tampa?The job market should be kinder in those cities plus offer other amenities are looking for. But you may need 2nd car.

We've actually driven through pats of Jacksonville, Tampa and Orlando. I guess they were just so busy and overwhelming that we didn't consider any suburbs around there, but I think you're right about the job market there, because whenever we do job searches, they all seem to pop up, especially in Tampa. Some of my co-workers told me that St Augustine is a nice place, but I am not seeing any video production job opportunities there especially for my Husband. If we can find a small town close to a bigger city with all the amenities where the commute is less than an hour and we can both get there with one car, that would be ideal. If we do make the move, getting a second car will not be in the cards for us at least not for awhile. We have been doing so much research as it stands, but there is so much more ahead of us. I will have a look for some suburbs around those areas and see what I can find that might work for us. Hopefully something will. Thanks for your reply.

[CarrieBanks]

Originally Posted by THX 1138

That's only the half of it, figure in what unemployment pays in Florida, if you lose your job....a maximum of $275/week, which is based on your salary you can get less if you made less. My friend could not collect because Motorola gave him a severance and he landed a job in CA before it ran out, he is lucky...some people get no severance and are tossed out with little savings and try paying your rent on that, say in my area where a 1 bedroom can cost you $1K/+ month. Nothing left over to pay for anything else = ticket to eviction.

The downturn has created a lot of unemployed, some have given up looking for work and are still surviving because someone else in the household is able to keep them treading water. Many bought their homes years back and have low payments. Some who bought during the boom are losing their homes or already lost them.

It's an interesting mix, a lot of people left and many that are moving here now are retirees, there just isn't much job creation to offset the ones that were lost prior. Employers are very picky, because they can be, plenty of people looking for a job. This makes getting a job more difficult if not impossible for some who have gaps in employment or long term job loss.

A "ton of money" is right, and also confidence you will find a job, that's a chance you take and for many the only way to get here is to move here, at one time when unemployment was 3-4%, that might have been a logical risk, but now it would be even riskier....

I am thinking about that every step of the way. I just don't want to take a bad risk at the same time and have any regrets. There is so much to consider as it's a major decision, but the more knowledge we have when considering the larger picture at hand, we will hopefully be able to make the best decision possible at the end of it all.

[cfbs2691]

Originally Posted by CarrieBanks

unless of course you have a ton of money to move there with and not have to worry about anything, which not everyone can afford to do.

Many people I've met down here were born with silver spoons.
It's tough for those of us who weren't.