Where to move to?

I been stuck in the South East (Georiga/Florida area) for the last 4-5 years and I am getting sick of it. If you had a chance to move, where would you move to? I been all over the United States/World aready due to being in the Army for 6+ years. One of the few states I haven't been to is Colorado and I love the idea of seeing mountians again, but I don't know the IT market there though.

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JockVSJock

From the information in this thread, I'm going to look at Texas (DFW, Houston, San Antonio and Austin). Also interested in the Tech Triangle of North Carolina.

Once I knock out some advance certs, long term goal would be to end up in Southern Cali or SF area.

MAC_Addy

I hear that Texas is a very good place to be. The company I work for has a lot of offices there. I've looked on indeed and places (before I got this job) when looking for jobs, seems like a good place to go. Though, if you're looking for a specific job, and that specific job came up, then I'd personally move anywhere - unless it was California. My wife will refuse to live there.

SharkDiver

I just moved to the Raleigh/RTP area last month. So far, I am loving it. It sure beats Pittsburgh, PA.
I drove through Research Triangle Park this past weekend. There are definitely a lot of high tech places to work.

MAC_Addy

How come there are so many jobs in the NC, SC area? I'm not originally from America, so pardon me for not knowing.

SharkDiver

That's kind of hard to answer. Different places are just known for different things.
Pittsburgh is known for steel.
Idaho is known for potatoes.
San Jose, Seattle and Research Triangle Park, NC are known for technology.
Sorry, if I left out anyone's favorite place.

it_consultant

Sirbloody wrote: »

I wonder how the cost of living in Denver is, there are a couple of jobs that I have my eye on already.

Expensive.

We were looking at new homes in North Stapleton, a 1900 sq foot house with the options we liked was $395,000, with the basement finished the footage goes to 2500 and adds about twenty five thousand to the price. Think you can do better in the burbs? Probably, you will get a bigger house but for what you actually want you are often times north of $400,000. Watching house hunters in Atlanta or Texas really pisses me off!

gunbunnysoulja

it_consultant wrote: »

Expensive.

We were looking at new homes in North Stapleton, a 1900 sq foot house with the options we liked was $395,000, with the basement finished the footage goes to 2500 and adds about twenty five thousand to the price. Think you can do better in the burbs? Probably, you will get a bigger house but for what you actually want you are often times north of $400,000. Watching house hunters in Atlanta or Texas really pisses me off!

Ha, and this is why I live in a small Florida town... My 3 bedroom 1500 sf house was $26,000. The only other place I would ever consider living would be Texas (although no amount of money could make me leave FL).

Network_Engineer

Atlanta, GA!!!

Network_Engineer

Bought a 4,000 sq ft home for $245,000 about 6 months ago! No way you could do that in Tampa, where I moved from last year.

DoubleNNs

gunbunnysoulja wrote: »

Ha, and this is why I live in a small Florida town... My 3 bedroom 1500 sf house was $26,000. The only other place I would ever consider living would be Texas (although no amount of money could make me leave FL).

A house for the price of a car?
That's amazing.

gunbunnysoulja

Ha yea, it's nice not having to worry about a mortgage! Plus my taxes are only $400 a year.

I really love my town too.. It's more on the retirement community/snowbird side, but they have everything here that I would ever want, for a small 7,000 person town. Large chain of lakes, so I'm out on the boat every Saturday. Plus I work from home so expenses are really low (plus my wife works from home too). It's not what you make, it's what you spend.

house.jpg

sratakhin

Move to Nebraska, where you can find houses cheaper than cars. Just to add to SharkDiver post, the state is known for corn. Anybody excited?

Nyblizzard

And here we are paying $1000+ a month on rent in NYC

DoubleNNs

I don't mean to hijack the thread, but while making plans to move what are some general guidelines for making a smooth move?

What are some things you guys look for in a place to decide whether you want to move there or not? How much do you save? What do you do before/after moving? Does your plan change depending on where you're moving to?

PurpleIT

it_consultant wrote: »

Expensive.

We were looking at new homes in North Stapleton, a 1900 sq foot house with the options we liked was $395,000, with the basement finished the footage goes to 2500 and adds about twenty five thousand to the price. Think you can do better in the burbs? Probably, you will get a bigger house but for what you actually want you are often times north of $400,000. Watching house hunters in Atlanta or Texas really pisses me off!

This is what has me nervous about trying to relocate to Denver this spring/summer; Tucson's market is kinda, sorta, almost starting to recover, but the housing market, rentals especially, seems to be going nuts in Denver.

it_consultant

PurpleIT wrote: »

This is what has me nervous about trying to relocate to Denver this spring/summer; Tucson's market is kinda, sorta, almost starting to recover, but the housing market, rentals especially, seems to be going nuts in Denver.

Our rental rate is something like 98%, so high that I think I will rent out my condo when we are ready to buy as opposed to selling it. Denver is a magnet for surrounding cities and states; which is great, means the economy here is cranking along, but your expectations for house size and quality might have to be checked. We aren't quite San Jose pricing, where the development we looked at would be closer to $600,000, but we are getting their and I don't think it will let up.

Keep in mind I HATE the burbs, I hate Lakewood, I hate Centennial, I hate Littleton, and I really hate Highlands Ranch. I currently live in Westminster, which I can stomach because I am very close to the city. If you are not as picky as I am then you can have a nice house in the burbs at $325,000. Still inflated compared to other areas, but much more affordable.

MAC_Addy

Nyblizzard wrote: »

And here we are paying $1000+ a month on rent in NYC

Shoot, I'm paying just as much in OKC.

petedude

it_consultant wrote: »

. . .If you are not as picky as I am then you can have a nice house in the burbs at $325,000. . .

Sounds like Los Angeles.

sratakhin

325k for a house in LA area? is it in Compton?

Nyblizzard

MAC_Addy wrote: »

Shoot, I'm paying just as much in OKC.

In an apartment or house? I'm in a small apartment -_-

MAC_Addy

Nyblizzard wrote: »

In an apartment or house? I'm in a small apartment -_-

Ah, I'm in a house.

Wish I were on a boat (I had to add that).

SharkDiver

DoubleNNs wrote: »

I don't mean to hijack the thread, but while making plans to move what are some general guidelines for making a smooth move?

What are some things you guys look for in a place to decide whether you want to move there or not? How much do you save? What do you do before/after moving? Does your plan change depending on where you're moving to?

I just moved from Pittsburgh to Raleigh last month, and no amount of planning could have prepared me. I actually had a feeling that I would be moving back in January (when I applied - same company, different position), and started packing things up then. I thought we would just rent a moving truck, and drive down. Well, nothing is ever that easy. I ended up bringing a 12' truck to Raleigh at the end of March, loading up a 16' POD in April, and bringing a 16' truck down in May. They wanted me in Raleigh before my wife could leave her job, so she stayed behind for April.

So, I would not be good at telling you how to have a SMOOTH move.

As far as savings, definitely have a great deal of money available or find a company that will pay for your relocation. Moving is expensive. I have heard of people spending $25,000 or more. We did everything as cheaply as we could, and it still cost thousands. Then, you have to worry about renting a place to live until you find a house that you want to buy, selling your old house, renting a storage space to hold your stuff until you have room, paying the utilities at both your old place and your new place, etc.

Now, if you rent and don't have a ton of stuff to move, it could go smoother.

After moving, you have to worry about re-registering your vehicles, getting a new driver's license, forwarding your mail, changing your address with everyone, possibly changing your bank, etc.

None of it is fun, and it can cause you alot of stress, but for the right job, it can all be worth it.

PurpleIT

it_consultant wrote: »

Our rental rate is something like 98%, so high that I think I will rent out my condo when we are ready to buy as opposed to selling it. Denver is a magnet for surrounding cities and states; which is great, means the economy here is cranking along, but your expectations for house size and quality might have to be checked. We aren't quite San Jose pricing, where the development we looked at would be closer to $600,000, but we are getting their and I don't think it will let up.

I just got off the phone with a recruiter who tried to tell me the cost of living up there isn't as high as I think, immediately followed by "houses are moving fast" which is one of the biggest factors in the cost of living... I'm going to have to take anything this guy says with a grain of salt and hope he is better at placing people than he is at using a CoL calculator.

Keep in mind I HATE the burbs, I hate Lakewood, I hate Centennial, I hate Littleton, and I really hate Highlands Ranch. I currently live in Westminster, which I can stomach because I am very close to the city. If you are not as picky as I am then you can have a nice house in the burbs at $325,000. Still inflated compared to other areas, but much more affordable.

That same house here is probably under $200,000. My 1600 sf 3/2 house on .1 acre is about $130,000 (it would rent for about $1,000-1,100 a month). Gas, vehicle registration and food may nickle and dime you when moving from place to place, but housing is the the biggest issue.

it_consultant

I am of two minds on the topic of CoL. On one hand, I hate knowing that I am paying significantly more for the same thing that someone else is paying less for in a different geographic location. On the other hand, the traffic, low inventory, and high prices are a sign that stuff is going on. I have lived in upstate New York (Albany), Denver, Cheyenne, and Fort Collins, and Biloxi (among others) and I can say that without fail, the more expensive places are generally more pleasant places to live. There is a certain level of needing to buy into a "lifestyle". For me, I am willing to pay cost of admission, others may have a different opinion.

gunbunnysoulja

it_consultant wrote: »

the more expensive places are generally more pleasant places to live. There is a certain level of needing to buy into a "lifestyle".

I would assume a lot of this has to do with the individual, and what they enjoy/consider pleasant. Any place with heavy traffic is not pleasant to me and is rather a burden. For me, a low cost area is more pleasant if it also includes what I prefer as a lifestyle, as lower cost of living/expenses yields lower stress for me. I know every week I'm out on the lake, every day it's about 80 degrees, and every day I'm incredibly glad I moved to Florida while I am still young. My brother in law for example likes the night life, going out and partying, wants to live on the beach, etc... This would obviously cost more, and some prefer the city lifestyle, in which you do need to pay more. It's just not for everyone.

I last worked in the Boston area, which is a very expensive place to live (although it also pays very well). Many people LOVE Boston. I think it is a great place to work/visit, but for me it's not a great place to live. Too cold/busy/expensive, etc...

While I have lived in MA, KY, OK, and KS, I have never enjoyed a city as much as I do my small town. It is friendly, very clean, plenty to do, plenty of restaurants, low crime, has lakes for boating, close to Disney and the ocean, and cost of living is about the cheapest in the country.

it_consultant

You definitely pay a cost of admission to live in Boston, so much that if you need to really like it to pay it. Luckily, Denver is no where near that bad, but I can easily see it rival the San Jose's of the world in the next 20 years.

I have a friend who lives in MN and they are flabbergasted by how expensive things are in Denver, I have to remind them that price reflects desirability. More people are leaving MN for Denver than the other way around. If that trend reversed, MN would become very expensive and Denver would deflate. I like living where things are going on, probably because I spent my formative years as a child in Plattsburgh, NY, where nothing ever went on...ever. We had a phish concert in the 90s...

SouthSeaPirate

gunbunnysoulja wrote: »

Ha, and this is why I live in a small Florida town... My 3 bedroom 1500 sf house was $26,000. The only other place I would ever consider living would be Texas (although no amount of money could make me leave FL).

I wish only wish I could say the same. I think I'd pay anything to get out of Florida.

East Tennessee any day.

About7Narwhal

SouthSeaPirate wrote: »

East Tennessee any day.

The Vol nation isn't exactly overflowing with IT jobs. Knoxville and Oak Ridge appear to only want programmers here recently...

MSP-IT

it_consultant wrote: »

You definitely pay a cost of admission to live in Boston, so much that if you need to really like it to pay it. Luckily, Denver is no where near that bad, but I can easily see it rival the San Jose's of the world in the next 20 years.

I have a friend who lives in MN and they are flabbergasted by how expensive things are in Denver, I have to remind them that price reflects desirability. More people are leaving MN for Denver than the other way around. If that trend reversed, MN would become very expensive and Denver would deflate. I like living where things are going on, probably because I spent my formative years as a child in Plattsburgh, NY, where nothing every went on...ever. We had a phish concert in the 90s...

I am the one crazy person that recently moved from Colorado back to MN, although it wasn't career related, I would move back in a heartbeat. As far as the cost of living goes, I personally think Denver is quite comparable to Minnesota. If anything, I would say that Minnesota may be a bit more expensive than Denver, but I guess I haven't done much looking around for housing. I did job hunt a bit more when I was in Denver, and the pay rate for IT does seem to be roughly 20% higher for comparable jobs.

SouthSeaPirate

About7Narwhal wrote: »

The Vol nation isn't exactly overflowing with IT jobs. Knoxville and Oak Ridge appear to only want programmers here recently...

Thanks for the heads up, but Im already in that situation. I believe I have 1 of 4 in 100sq miles.

Ill be a sewage removal engineer if I could move back to Sevierville.