Most ideal spot to live to start an IT Career?

Ready to move for various reasons....

So, where is the state with an abundance of IT jobs and a low cost of living?

Currently live in Nashville...yes some of the entry jobs do pay around $18-20 an hour, yet cost of living is high, as it it a tourist trap and celebrities live here. (Which is why I live an hour away in the outskirts)

I've even looked towards Colorado and seen a few entry spots that pay higher than that, like in Denver.

Is the cost of living high in Colorado, since the drug laws have changed?

Have people rushed to live there?

I've even considered moving to North Carolina or Jacksonville, FL.

Any and all opinions is welcome.

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Comments

flying_postman

With me immigrating from the Caribbean, the Texas weather was the deciding factor for me (I was shivering in 50 degree weather in NC). Just an overview of my IT background; 12 years IT experience in Trinidad and in the Caribbean region, Masters from the UK in Network Security in addition to my certs.I noticed Austin has more developer/programmers openings than other tech roles in comparison to Dallas where it's the opposite. Do you think I would have a decent chance in Austin to get a role in Systems/Network/Server administration?

skswitch

MeanDrunkR2D2 wrote: »

If you want a higher risk of being stabbed, Jacksonville is a great city. Personally even though I have plenty of family that live in Florida I would never consider relocating there for an IT job. The market there is too far tied into tourism to feel stable for me. Dallas fort worth, Austin, Houston, and even San Antonio would be hotter it hubs. (San Antonio would possibly be a stretch though as rackspace hasn't been as hot as they used to be)

I think you need to ask what you want in a city and then look for one that fits that mold to grow your career and enjoy life. When it all comes down to it, we want to be happy and we only work to live, not live to work. That's why my family relocated where we did in the past month because the IT market is hot, cost of loving is good and we just love the area. I've loved in many major cities and came back to the Midwest metro I love to give the best life for my boys and to be happy with it all.

Couldn't agree more on this. Especially the hospitality/tourism which in long run ruins it for locals. Granted its awesome I've been to all the parks here at no cost to me, multiple times! Gotta know somebody that works at each park

. You pay tourist prices though else where.

For the house market. I live in a small town outside a main hub. I paid $130k for 3bd/2bath 1200sqft. I'd never live in a main city. Ever. Outskirts is where its at. Look there for cheaper housing and no where near an HOA area. I actually have pulled up to the wrong house before due to them looking like someone ctrl c / ctrl v them all.

Job market is okay for starting/mid. It really is owned by recruiters. And they might not even have the rights to the job! I can do a search and find something that has 5+ recruiting agency for same detailed posting. Always found my the jobs I had on my own. You could probably find a position paying 30-50k no problem here. Past that, its all networking right people.

Oh and weather. Kinda big factor as well. Currently its mid December and I have my A/C on. Last week it was upper 70's maybe 80 afternoon time and I wore sandals yesterday lol.

stlsmoore

80hr wrote: »

Hum.... in the 512 ( Austin) area ... you can pick up a nice place to live for 300-400K and @ 20% down seems reasonable to me. even if you don't make 100K a year

It's all relative, coming from the Midwest where the same home is $150-200k. That and from my own stubborn personal finance rules, I refuse to spend more than x3 my salary on a home.

Daneil3144

networker050184 wrote: »

Greenville is definitely not a good place to have a tech career. Raleigh and Atlanta are good areas though your looking at more expensive than Nashville in ATL and at least on par in most areas of Raleigh.

I don't have any experience with Jacksonville personally though.

Yea, quite a few people mentioned Atlanta to me. Definitely will check out the job listings down there.