Where should I move?

Good morning Tech Examers,

I'm coming to realize I need to move out of Iowa. I love Iowa, I just need to get away from it for a few years to experience something else. Where should I move? The following are important:

-IT jobs. Gotta have a job.
-Cost of living. I realize Iowa has one of the lowest costs of living in the US. Something manageable
-Weather. Not a big deal, but I really hate dealing with snow.
-Education. I have a 1 year old son. My wife will be an elementary teacher.
-Sports. I'm a huge football and basketball fan.
-Nightlife/Things to do: Some place not as boring as Iowa.
-Commute: I don't want to spend half a day commuting.

Looking at moving in about 2 years, but want to start preparing. Should I look at suburbs of bigger cities like Chicago, LA, or New York?

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veritas_libertas

subl1m1nal wrote: »

Good morning Tech Examers,

I'm coming to realize I need to move out of Iowa. I love Iowa, I just need to get away from it for a few years to experience something else. Where should I move? The following are important:

-IT jobs. Gotta have a job.
-Cost of living. I realize Iowa has one of the lowest costs of living in the US. Something manageable
-Weather. Not a big deal, but I really hate dealing with snow.
-Education. I have a 1 year old son. My wife will be an elementary teacher.
-Sports. I'm a huge football and basketball fan.
-Nightlife/Things to do: Some place not as boring as Iowa.
-Commute: I don't want to spend half a day commuting.

Looking at moving in about 2 years, but want to start preparing. Should I look at suburbs of bigger cities like Chicago, LA, or New York?

The Carolinas are doing well and snow is rare to see. Atlanta also seems to be doing okay.

brianeaglesfan

Houston is where I'm headed as we speak.

1) Resigned my previous job on 10/13, have already had calls on 2 industry-related (health care) jobs in the last 5 days.
2) From what I've seen it has among the lowest costs of living for a large city in the US.
3) Weather... all I can say is I don't think you have to worry about snow there.
4) Education... from what I understand the quality of the school systems can vary greatly depending upon where you live. I'll be in the Clear Lake City area, and they have some nationally ranked schools there.... whatever that means.
5) Has sports teams in all but hockey.
6) City goes 24/7, great nightlife from my experience.
7) Commute... this may be a sticking point.

subl1m1nal

I love the Myrtle Beach area for the Carolinas! How is that area for IT?

Atlanta seems alright as well.

Texas seems good as well. I have family in the Dallas area. Dallas? What about San Antonio?

Also considering Miami, New York, and San Francisco. Any thoughts?

rogue2shadow

I heard the bay area is growing quickly!

rwmidl

subl1m1nal wrote: »

I love the Myrtle Beach area for the Carolinas! How is that area for IT?

Atlanta seems alright as well.

Texas seems good as well. I have family in the Dallas area. Dallas? What about San Antonio?

Also considering Miami, New York, and San Francisco. Any thoughts?

For SC there are three "big" areas if you want a choice for IT: Greenville/Spartanburg, Columbia and Charleston. Charleston has a big Department of Defense presence so there are a lot of DoD contractors in the area. Check on Dice (do a state search for SC then area code 843) and that will give you an idea on what is available in the Charleston area. Charleston is different than MB, but we are only about 1.5 hours from MB.

Columbia - DoD presence as well as State government (it is the state capital). I haven't lived in Columbia since 1996 when I graduated from USC so I really can't say much more about it.

Greenville/Spartanburg - lots of industry/manufacturing up there. About an hour or two from Charlotte, about 2-3 (maybe) to Atlanta. I've never lived up there so I don't know much about it. I think they do get colder weather/snow than we get in Charleston.

Cost of living wise, I think Columbia and Greenville/Spartanburg are cheaper than Charleston. But we have the beach in Charleston

I've lived in Atlanta before. I didn't care for it too much, but it is a big city and there are a lot of opportunities there. You will have a lot of traffic to deal with if you live outside of the city.

You mentioned sports. In the South, college football is king. You can pretty much catch any college game on tv. Charleston is about 2 hours from Columbia, so if you wanted to see the Gamecocks (USC) play, you could. Clemson Univ. is about 4 hours away (just past Greenville) if you wanted to see the Tigers play. For pro, Charlotte has the Panthers (3.5 hours from Charleston) and Atlanta has the Falcons (5 hours from Charleston). There are two smaller schools in Charleston that field football teams, the Citadel and Charleston Southern. Basketball, well pretty much the same for football, with the exception of College of Charleston fields a usually pretty good basketball team.

One thing about Charleston too - Boeing is building a pretty big plant here that will be building the 737 Dreamliner.

If you have any questions on Charleston drop me a note and I'll be happy to answer what I can.

veritas_libertas

rwmidl wrote: »

Greenville/Spartanburg - lots of industry/manufacturing up there. About an hour or two from Charlotte, about 2-3 (maybe) to Atlanta. I've never lived up there so I don't know much about it. I think they do get colder weather/snow than we get in Charleston.

Cost of living wise, I think Columbia and Greenville/Spartanburg are cheaper than Charleston. But we have the beach in Charleston

LOL, by how much?

Having lived in Michigan it's seems VERY warm at times

egb893

subl1m1nal wrote: »

I love the Myrtle Beach area for the Carolinas! How is that area for IT?

Atlanta seems alright as well.

Texas seems good as well. I have family in the Dallas area. Dallas? What about San Antonio?

Also considering Miami, New York, and San Francisco. Any thoughts?

I've been living in San Antonio for the last five years. It's not a bad place to live but I'm used to Los Angeles and will be moving back soon.

IT Jobs- If you have a security clearance you will easily land a job. Rackspace is also located here as well as some big companies like Toyota, Chase, and Citi Bank. I also heard cyber security command center (or something like that) is supposed to be located here.

Cost of Living- lower cost of living, at least compared to LA. Cheap houses too.

Education- I have two little ones and their school is practically new. Best school district is Northside Independent School District (I wouldn't put my kids in any other district).

Sports- It's Spurs country out here. Very dangerous for a Lakers fan!:)

Nightlife- It's decent, lots of new places being built.

Commute- Not too bad. It would be great if the freeways would have been built properly.

San Antonio is definitely growing and should have lots of opportunities.

Los Angeles area is the place to be for weather, nightlife and activities.

rwmidl

veritas_libertas wrote: »

LOL, by how much?

Having lived in Michigan it's seems VERY warm at times

It seems like every winter there GSP gets snow/ice some kind of winter weather. Nothing compared to Michigan I'm sure. For Charleston, we got our first snowfall in like 10 years this past Feb.

snokerpoker

The bay area is beautiful and the weather is awesome, but the TRAFFIC SUCKS! I live in the north bay area which is a bit more low key than other areas, but still has bad traffic. If you do decide to move out here, I would highly suggest moving somewhere that is close to a Bart station (public train transportation) otherwise you will be sitting in traffic at some point in your day.

subl1m1nal

rwmidl wrote: »

You mentioned sports. In the South, college football is king. You can pretty much catch any college game on tv. Charleston is about 2 hours from Columbia, so if you wanted to see the Gamecocks (USC) play, you could. Clemson Univ. is about 4 hours away (just past Greenville) if you wanted to see the Tigers play. For pro, Charlotte has the Panthers (3.5 hours from Charleston) and Atlanta has the Falcons (5 hours from Charleston). There are two smaller schools in Charleston that field football teams, the Citadel and Charleston Southern. Basketball, well pretty much the same for football, with the exception of College of Charleston fields a usually pretty good basketball team.

I should mention I'm a Hawkeye fan for life. I apologize for the 2009 Outback Bowl. I'm a midwest guy sports wise. To me, the Big Ten will always trump the SEC, ACC, Pac-10, or Big 12. So I guess sports isn't that big of an issue as long as I can catch the Hawkeyes on TV (I don't get down to Iowa City very often).

For pro, I like my Minnesota teams for football and baseball. I also enjoy the Cubs. Pro basketball I could care less about. I'll sit and watch about any pro b-ball game.

kidainny

I've got to live in a few areas (Phoenix, NYC, South Jersey/Philly, San Antonio, Central Virginia) and each really have their own unique flavor. Just my opinion but:

1. NYC - If you didn't grow up there and have roots, i'm not sure why you'd want to live there unless you have some amazing paying job. If you're coming in from the suburbs, just remember Manhattan is an island, and there's millions of people. Commute times can get out of control quickly. New Yorkers are used to it, but if you're from Iowa - i would pass. Jobs pay well - most/some of the time. But a help desk job there can still be between 12-15 bucks an hour because there's lots of people competing for the job. You really got to come in with a big skill set to make the money you would need to raise a family. A lot of services are used in this city that drive taxes and tolls up and is driving much of the middle class out. (i remember driving from Texas to NY and not paying a nickel for a toll or bridge until i got into the NJ/NY border and paid 8 bucks to cross the bridge. Awesome!! lol) You will not live well on this money in that city. Nightlife is awesome, but expensive - Sports - everything.

2. San Antonio - Cool town. Thought IT was pretty good there. Cost of living was VERY good IMO. Weather nice until the few months of summer - little bit too hot for a Yankee like me. Nice people - overall good night life. Commute - depends on where you live. I rented a house out in the northeast town of Converse and had to run across to the other side of town. There was traffic, but you got to expect that - Virtually little to no public transportation. Sports - Spurs.

3. Central Virginia - Real nice area. If you can get a gov job in IT you're set. Cost of living varies between counties - but look for DC jobs moving south to Richmond and Cville. Decent nightlife - Not like San Antonio, certainly not like NYC - but i live in a college town. Culture and nightlife is there and affordable. College sports rule.

Phoenix - Cant truly speak for it anymore - been over 10 years since i've lived there and heard it's changed much.

Good luck in your searches!!

rwmidl

subl1m1nal wrote: »

I should mention I'm a Hawkeye fan for life. I apologize for the 2009 Outback Bowl. I'm a midwest guy sports wise. To me, the Big Ten will always trump the SEC, ACC, Pac-10, or Big 12. So I guess sports isn't that big of an issue as long as I can catch the Hawkeyes on TV (I don't get down to Iowa City very often).

For pro, I like my Minnesota teams for football and baseball. I also enjoy the Cubs. Pro basketball I could care less about. I'll sit and watch about any pro b-ball game.

Don't worry about it. The Gamecocks are very hot and cold (perfect example, we beat Alabama but the lost to Kentucky!?) I want to say there is a pretty good Hawkeye fan base in Charleston, but I'm not sure.

subl1m1nal

rwmidl wrote: »

Don't worry about it. The Gamecocks are very hot and cold (perfect example, we beat Alabama but the lost to Kentucky!?) I want to say there is a pretty good Hawkeye fan base in Charleston, but I'm not sure.

I watched that Alabama/SC game. That was pretty awesome!!! I don't get out of Iowa much, but I hear there are Hawkeye fans world wide.

I actually live in a town next to a college town. Remember when the University of Northern Iowa upset Kansas in the NCAA Men's Basketball tourney last year? That's the kind of sports environment I'd like to see. Cedar Falls went nuts for the few days we got national attention! SC wouldn't be bad at all!

subl1m1nal

Yeah, I think I'm ruling NYC out of it. It was nice to visit, but it would drive me nuts. There's no grass besides central park. Kinda dirty and expensive. But there's plenty to do!

Mike-Mike

I love Louisville.... but if I had to move, I would probably go to Nashville or Chicago

IT Nerd

2 years from now none of our posts, mine included, will matter.
I'd shoot for Hawaii, Cozumel or Turks and Caicos!

If you have two years to prepare, dream big.
None of us know where the right place will be in 2 years.
There will be a network screwed up and end users screaming anywhere you go.
If you can't find a job, make one.

rwmidl

subl1m1nal wrote: »

I watched that Alabama/SC game. That was pretty awesome!!! I don't get out of Iowa much, but I hear there are Hawkeye fans world wide.

I actually live in a town next to a college town. Remember when the University of Northern Iowa upset Kansas in the NCAA Men's Basketball tourney last year? That's the kind of sports environment I'd like to see. Cedar Falls went nuts for the few days we got national attention! SC wouldn't be bad at all!

You'd probably like Charleston then. CofC has upset some pretty big teams from time to time. I know they've been UNC at least twice in my life (I think they beat them last year here in Charleston).

Breadfan

If you want to move to SC, I would suggest either Columbia (I've lived here my entire life

) or Greenville/Spartanburg. Charleston is my favorite city in the world but very overpopulated and traffic is CRAZY.
Here in Columbia, Google is coming soon (they already have a plant near Orangeburg I think). Dell is in a small town within driving distance of here. BCBS of SC (I worked there for 6 years; if you HAVE to have a job, go there).
In Charleston there is several companies like Blackbaud which I hear are great to work for.
The only other problem is the school system here. We have consistently been 48th or 49th in the nation in education for years and it's not getting any better with our nutjobs in the statehouse here.
The other good thing though about Columbia is you are around 2 hours either way for the beach or the mountains. Good luck in the job search...

[Deleted User]

I know it isn't in your options but I do like St. Louis a lot. You can live in a small town and get a taste of the city when you want it. I don't go down there for the nightlife very often but I was there last weekend and had a great time. We have a pretty good array of sports although I only cheer for the Cardinals. Schools on the IL side are pretty good.

rwmidl

Breadfan wrote: »

If you want to move to SC, I would suggest either Columbia (I've lived here my entire life ) or Greenville/Spartanburg. Charleston is my favorite city in the world but very overpopulated and traffic is CRAZY.
Here in Columbia, Google is coming soon (they already have a plant near Orangeburg I think). Dell is in a small town within driving distance of here. BCBS of SC (I worked there for 6 years; if you HAVE to have a job, go there).
In Charleston there is several companies like Blackbaud which I hear are great to work for.
The only other problem is the school system here. We have consistently been 48th or 49th in the nation in education for years and it's not getting any better with our nutjobs in the statehouse here.
The other good thing though about Columbia is you are around 2 hours either way for the beach or the mountains. Good luck in the job search...

Depending on where you live in Charleston, traffic can be bad. If you live pretty much anywhere north of Ashley Phosphate I26 traffic can get bad. From what I remember, traffic in Columbia can get pretty bad too.

The Google facility is here in Charleston (Goose Creek to be exact) but I don't know of anyone who is working there. The only jobs I've seen them advertise for seem to be maintenance/HVAC/facilities management. The other company you mentioned - I know people who work for and have worked for them. I have my own opinion on them.

Schools - yeah that is kind of a weak here in SC. There are good schools, so it really makes where you look to live very important. The good news is we do have quite a few nutjobs running the state, so you will constantly be entertained!

Paul Boz

San Diego is my next stop.

GT-Rob

Canada. We have moose.

Claymoore

You mentioned Miami, so I'll give my opinions of the Florida metro areas. I came from the midwest and love living in Florida, but it's not without its faults. July and August can be pretty rough with the heat and humidity. We don't really have winter here, in fact the seasons don't change much, and I track the seasons by what seasonal beers are stocked.

Florida was also hit hard by the housing collapse. Real estate speculation and outright fraud were rampant. Prices doubled, property taxes followed suit, and then a few hurricanes caused insurers to jack up rates or pull out altogether. It will take us years to get out of this mess.

Miami/Ft Lauderdale - Unless you are moving from NYC or speak spanish, don't bother. It's a fun place to visit for the nightlife, but it is expensive and traffic has been terrible every time I visited. They have teams in all four major sports and a good college team.

Tampa/St. Pete - Bad unemployment since the housing collapse and no real anchor companies to keep things stable. Traffic is getting better with some of the improvements in the last few years, but can be a disaster if something happens on one of the bay bridges. We do have teams in three major sports, but they aren't all good at the same time.

Naples/Ft Meyers - Destination for wealthy snowbirds and retirees. It's expensive and government, construction or healthcare are about your only industries.

Orlando - Disney. They have other employers as well, but Disney dominates the city. Surprisingly good nightlife with Church Street, Downtown Disney's Pleasure Island and Universal City Walk. Traffic can be a mess. No beaches - why live in FL if you can't be near the water?

Jacksonville - Florida is a strange place where you have to travel north to go to the south. Jacksonville is more blue-collar than the other cities and it has some good anchor businesses to keep it stable. The former Fidelity companies (FNF, FIS, and LPS) plus BCBS FL, CSX and an IT staffing firm whose name escapes me. I don't know about the schools or nightlife, but I would consider Jacksonville if I were looking into moving to Florida.

veritas_libertas

GT-Rob wrote: »

Canada. We have moose.

So does the UP (Upper Peninsula of Michigan USA,) but who wants to move there?

Just teasing...

gosh1976

Atlanta was mentioned earlier so I'll put in my advice. The suburbs to the north and south have some very nice school districts but also some very bad ones (stay away from clayton county).

Most of the IT jobs are on the north side or in the city so you would want to concentrate on the north side of Atlanta to avoid long commutes. Actually if you work in the city and commute from outside I-285 you will still have to deal with a bit of traffic.

networker050184

The Carolinas are a great place to live. I'd suggest the Triangle (Raleigh, Cary and Durham) area of NC as your best bet for what you want. There are plenty of tech jobs in the area. You have plenty of college sports if thats your thing. Especially basket ball with Duke, UNC and NC State all right there. Your closest bet for pro sports is probably Charlotte for the Bobcats and Panthers. The cost of living is pretty low and the quality of life is high in the area.

The Greenville/Spartunburg is a nice area, but the tech job market isn't very strong. No where near the Triangle area. As a transplanted Saints fan I'm right in between Charlotte and Atlanta so I get two chances to see them play every year so thats a plus for me.

Mishra

Mike-Mike wrote: »

I love Louisville.... but if I had to move, I would probably go to Nashville or Chicago

Well look at this, another Louisvillian.

Paul Boz

Claymoore wrote: »

Miami/Ft Lauderdale - Unless you are moving from NYC or speak spanish, don't bother. It's a fun place to visit for the nightlife, but it is expensive and traffic has been terrible every time I visited. They have teams in all four major sports and a good college team.

Seconding a requirement to speak Español. I've been to Miami on business several times and I'd say about 80% of the people whom I interacted with could speak Spanish fluently. One of my clients was in Hollywood Florida, just north of Miami, and had to take a job there rather than Miami because she speaks poor Spanish and it is very difficult to get by without it. It was strange having a language barrier at Subway when I'd go to get a sandwich. The lady behind the counter at the one by the Miami International Airport Hilton Garden Inn could not speak a lick of English and that's not uncommon.

Mishra

I would look at Columbus, OH. Sounds like it fits some of what you are looking for. The Carolinas also sounds great.

-IT jobs. Quite a few and a growing city.
-Cost of living. Low cost of living for such a beautiful area
-Weather. Snow is expected.
-Education. Awesome schooling in the northern Columbus area.
-Sports. Buckeys support is wild there. Many many late night sports pubs
-Nightlife/Things to do: I don't think the nightlife was something extravagant but well enough.
-Commute: Wonderful commute. A little worse if you are going downtown.

Paul Boz

Mishra wrote: »

I would look at Columbus, OH. Sounds like it fits some of what you are looking for. The Carolinas also sounds great.
-Sports. Buckeys support is wild there. Many many late night sports pubs

I would say that for people that aren't from Columbus that's a huge negative

I went to Columbus on business last year and wore LSU V Ohio State National Championship stuff everywhere. It was glorious.