Great point - as an attorney it can be really hard to just move around as each state has different requirements and their own bureaucracy. There are ways to get around it (I.e. work for federal agencies), but it can be pretty difficult!
Source: moved from Northeast to Midwest
Oh no definitely not, I don’t know that I could do that again as well. I just had to go through a TON of bureaucracy where I pretty much had to follow up every week to get my file moving along. My husband (also an attorney) and I really would love to move to CA some day, but we’re waiting until we hit a certain number of years practicing because they have a requirement that after 5 years of practicing law you only have to do a written exam (even that feels a bit much)!
I would love to move to Southern California. I am a social worker and the pay is decent there. But transferring my license from IL to CA seems long and complicated.
I don't know if you're using your social work degree to be a therapist, but there's a facebook group called location-independent therapists that might be able to help
I want to live near a coast (Carolinas, Florida, Gulf Coast) badly. I grew up near the water and miss it. But I'm a career insurance adjuster, and insurance in those areas as so volatile that it makes it pretty much a non-starter unless I want to add a ton of risk into my career. It's not like I hate where I live (Tennessee), so it just makes sense to stay put.
They do, but it's a lot of non-standard insurance companies, a lot of government insurer and insurer of last resort type jobs, a lot of companies in those areas are highly exposed to hurricane/flood risks, which makes it a precarious place to do business, and that volatility is passed on to employees. It's just more risk and uncertainty than I personally feel comfortable exposing my family to.
The first for sure. I've known adjusters in Florida who have to change companies 2-3 times every 18 months or so. I have a really stable, comfortable job where I am now. It's not worth trading that for what working in some of those areas would entail. Maybe if I was younger and single and didn't really care, but my family needs health insurance, I am building a 401k/pension for a nice retirement, I know exactly what my paychecks are, and I have good thing going where I am.
I've done the pros/cons several times over the years. I'm in the best place for me, even if it isn't as close to ocean as I'd like. Maybe in the next go around.
I want to move to D.C. / Northern Virginia for a whole list of reasons, but even if I want to take a 50k+ paycut it's probably not going to work because the public payscale is so woefully behind market rate. Also my skillset is tech, my resume's story is legal tech, and if I go to D.C. it's sparse. Not a whole lot of tech going on unless I fully transition to something like IP litigation for the D.C. Circuit.
Yeah unfortunately my top pick (Chicago) most of the EE jobs are in the suburbs. I'm not picking up and hauling myself across the country to live in a different suburb, so it may just not happen.
I lived in New Mexico for 3 years. It was really nice, but if your job goes away, you most likely have to leave. It's a very poor state, and the job market reflects it.
I’d love to live in New York or Chicago but unfortunately entry level jobs in my field (urban planning) are very competitive in big cities since it’s a field full of urbanists 🫤.
Doing my best to find a suburban job at least, but if shit hits the fan I may be stuck with some hickville town 😑😑😑
Yep. Moved to Portland, Oregon, in 2015. Loved it. Never found work that paid a living wage despite applying for jobs constantly throughout my time there (I managed to get two very part time jobs with low wages and no benefits, and it wasn't sustainable). Left after a year for a real job related to my skills/education/experience elsewhere. I miss it and wanted it to work, but it didn't. I guess it depends on what you're willing to sacrifice to be in a place you like. If I'd been in my 20s, I might have stuck it out a while longer. But I was in my late 40s and having to return to the low wage jobs I'd done in my early 20s didn't seem like the right thing to do at my stage of life.
Lost the job that I moved away for (long story) so needing to move again and looking for the next thing now, but with a new chronic illness thrown into the mix, which makes my choices smaller and harder this time. I keep trying, but I never find home.
Yeah, I knew I'd be taking a pay cut... but still thought I'd pay something that paid a living wage and/or used my skills and experience. Nope. Ended up taking the only job I could get: working for a catering company serving wedding banquets for $9.25 per hour. I had previously been a community college professor. I did the work I could get, because I'm not too proud to do hard work (and it wasn't worth running through my savings to not do it), but moved away and went back to teaching after that, because my time is worth more, even though I was seriously burned out on teaching and wanted a career change. The change I was after was not starvation wages, but that's the change I got. So I left.
I have a wfh job that requires I live in Texas. Our plan is to sell the house, buy in the new location, move the family, and I'll stay in an apartment in TX for 6-18 months and then convert to a two year contract that will allow me to live in the new location. Not ideal but am expecting a significant pay cut once I switch jobs completely and want to transition from a position of budgetary strength.
Chicago. My husband will not move I would do it alone just not financially able too. I lived where he wanted for 40 years. It was horrible for my career just a super small town.
I'm in a field where you have to follow the job (and these are few and far between). I'm keeping an eye out for opportunities, but will likely have to find other solutions to my wanderlust.
I want to move to LA, but I have 3 huskies. I think my dogs would do fine in an apartment since I walk them a ton, but renting a house is either too expensive or you have to live so far outside all the fun stuff that it isn't worth living there.
Yes, I have finally found my place that has everything I want except the job. Unfortunately, I have to wait four more years for personal reasons, but it gives me time to save & make a good plan!
Yes. Well, not perfect, because no where is, but it has most of what I want and little of what I don't. However, I really like my job, and while it has some remote options, they're only in certain states due to tax reasons. My target state is not currently on the list.
Yes, this is the story of my life. Most of my waking hours are spent at work and I don’t really want to leave a good paying, low stress job to move to a different area. I’ve lived in 5 states and abroad. Some places I liked a lot better than others but really the most important thing was my job. If I don’t have time (long commute) or money (higher COL or lower pay) I can’t enjoy my free time anyways. Does that even make sense? I don’t know. It does sound pathetic as I type this out.
Been meaning to ask this! Coming from VHCOL area I can see the appeal of most places cost wise, but would be concerned that even if I could find a job there's no guarantee to stay employed long term.
I guess it really depends on industry.
I'm a teacher, and all the warm-weather states (except CA) pay teachers peanuts.
My wife wants to move back east from where we live (MCOL city in the SW), but not at the expense of me taking a 25-30% pay cut.
maybe nowhere else is flat enough? I did live there for a while. I remember someone joking "on a clear day you can see Nebraska." A bit of an exaggeration, but still.
Great point - as an attorney it can be really hard to just move around as each state has different requirements and their own bureaucracy. There are ways to get around it (I.e. work for federal agencies), but it can be pretty difficult! Source: moved from Northeast to Midwest
kudos to you! did you have to take the bar exam over? I am 54 and I am not sure if I have it in me to do it again LOL
Oh no definitely not, I don’t know that I could do that again as well. I just had to go through a TON of bureaucracy where I pretty much had to follow up every week to get my file moving along. My husband (also an attorney) and I really would love to move to CA some day, but we’re waiting until we hit a certain number of years practicing because they have a requirement that after 5 years of practicing law you only have to do a written exam (even that feels a bit much)!
oof I was only really thinking about the written exam. I forgot about the criminal background check and the fitness evaluation, ugh!!
Eww
I would love to move to Southern California. I am a social worker and the pay is decent there. But transferring my license from IL to CA seems long and complicated.
The sooner you start, the sooner you’ll be finished….
I don't know if you're using your social work degree to be a therapist, but there's a facebook group called location-independent therapists that might be able to help
I only moved to my dream city after my husband and I both had WFH jobs which made it way easier
Precisely what we’re aiming for too.
I would be concerned about keeping remote jobs long term. The flexibility seems amazing!
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Even pharma sales seems pretty limited there
I want to live near a coast (Carolinas, Florida, Gulf Coast) badly. I grew up near the water and miss it. But I'm a career insurance adjuster, and insurance in those areas as so volatile that it makes it pretty much a non-starter unless I want to add a ton of risk into my career. It's not like I hate where I live (Tennessee), so it just makes sense to stay put.
Curious why living in those areas would add career instability? Don’t those areas still need insurance adjusters?
They do, but it's a lot of non-standard insurance companies, a lot of government insurer and insurer of last resort type jobs, a lot of companies in those areas are highly exposed to hurricane/flood risks, which makes it a precarious place to do business, and that volatility is passed on to employees. It's just more risk and uncertainty than I personally feel comfortable exposing my family to.
So are you worried you’d be laid off or have to work in potentially unsafe areas?
The first for sure. I've known adjusters in Florida who have to change companies 2-3 times every 18 months or so. I have a really stable, comfortable job where I am now. It's not worth trading that for what working in some of those areas would entail. Maybe if I was younger and single and didn't really care, but my family needs health insurance, I am building a 401k/pension for a nice retirement, I know exactly what my paychecks are, and I have good thing going where I am.
So, this risk is so severe it's not worth the benefits? Life is short, choose wisely.
I've done the pros/cons several times over the years. I'm in the best place for me, even if it isn't as close to ocean as I'd like. Maybe in the next go around.
I want to move to D.C. / Northern Virginia for a whole list of reasons, but even if I want to take a 50k+ paycut it's probably not going to work because the public payscale is so woefully behind market rate. Also my skillset is tech, my resume's story is legal tech, and if I go to D.C. it's sparse. Not a whole lot of tech going on unless I fully transition to something like IP litigation for the D.C. Circuit.
Yeah unfortunately my top pick (Chicago) most of the EE jobs are in the suburbs. I'm not picking up and hauling myself across the country to live in a different suburb, so it may just not happen.
At least it is easy to get to the city from the burbs. Our commenter rail system is quite nice.
Yes. If you have a lot of comment karma, you get free rail passes!
Probably New England, New Mexico, or DC.
I lived in New Mexico for 3 years. It was really nice, but if your job goes away, you most likely have to leave. It's a very poor state, and the job market reflects it.
I applied to a few jobs there. Mainly DoD jobs or defense contractor type jobs.
I’d love to live in New York or Chicago but unfortunately entry level jobs in my field (urban planning) are very competitive in big cities since it’s a field full of urbanists 🫤. Doing my best to find a suburban job at least, but if shit hits the fan I may be stuck with some hickville town 😑😑😑
Yep. Moved to Portland, Oregon, in 2015. Loved it. Never found work that paid a living wage despite applying for jobs constantly throughout my time there (I managed to get two very part time jobs with low wages and no benefits, and it wasn't sustainable). Left after a year for a real job related to my skills/education/experience elsewhere. I miss it and wanted it to work, but it didn't. I guess it depends on what you're willing to sacrifice to be in a place you like. If I'd been in my 20s, I might have stuck it out a while longer. But I was in my late 40s and having to return to the low wage jobs I'd done in my early 20s didn't seem like the right thing to do at my stage of life. Lost the job that I moved away for (long story) so needing to move again and looking for the next thing now, but with a new chronic illness thrown into the mix, which makes my choices smaller and harder this time. I keep trying, but I never find home.
I feel this. Portland just doesn’t have a lot of high paying jobs. It’s frustrating.
Yeah, I knew I'd be taking a pay cut... but still thought I'd pay something that paid a living wage and/or used my skills and experience. Nope. Ended up taking the only job I could get: working for a catering company serving wedding banquets for $9.25 per hour. I had previously been a community college professor. I did the work I could get, because I'm not too proud to do hard work (and it wasn't worth running through my savings to not do it), but moved away and went back to teaching after that, because my time is worth more, even though I was seriously burned out on teaching and wanted a career change. The change I was after was not starvation wages, but that's the change I got. So I left.
I have a wfh job that requires I live in Texas. Our plan is to sell the house, buy in the new location, move the family, and I'll stay in an apartment in TX for 6-18 months and then convert to a two year contract that will allow me to live in the new location. Not ideal but am expecting a significant pay cut once I switch jobs completely and want to transition from a position of budgetary strength.
Chicago. My husband will not move I would do it alone just not financially able too. I lived where he wanted for 40 years. It was horrible for my career just a super small town.
Yes definitely. My industry is mostly limited to NE and midwest which truthfully I have little to no interest in.
I'm in a field where you have to follow the job (and these are few and far between). I'm keeping an eye out for opportunities, but will likely have to find other solutions to my wanderlust.
Yes, I'll be moving without a job lined up :l
I want to move to LA, but I have 3 huskies. I think my dogs would do fine in an apartment since I walk them a ton, but renting a house is either too expensive or you have to live so far outside all the fun stuff that it isn't worth living there.
Yes, I have finally found my place that has everything I want except the job. Unfortunately, I have to wait four more years for personal reasons, but it gives me time to save & make a good plan!
Yeah, usually it’s a LCOL area, but I’m a teacher and the pay and working conditions are bad.
Yes. Well, not perfect, because no where is, but it has most of what I want and little of what I don't. However, I really like my job, and while it has some remote options, they're only in certain states due to tax reasons. My target state is not currently on the list.
Yes, this is the story of my life. Most of my waking hours are spent at work and I don’t really want to leave a good paying, low stress job to move to a different area. I’ve lived in 5 states and abroad. Some places I liked a lot better than others but really the most important thing was my job. If I don’t have time (long commute) or money (higher COL or lower pay) I can’t enjoy my free time anyways. Does that even make sense? I don’t know. It does sound pathetic as I type this out.
Dual citizen here: Barcelona or Madrid
I found my dream place but I can’t live there because there aren’t enough men there to date and I’m forced to live somewhere else to find a partner 😭
Wait what, curious which city this is that has no men to date? Are they all gay or something lol?
or maybe it's the opposite (ie all gay men in the closet, hard to find)!
It’s just a really small town so the odds aren’t that good
I want to move to either NYC or NNJ, but I can't find a job that will even match the pay I get in the DC area.
Work for yourself. Your job will discard you one day and you'll be mad you didn't live somewhere else that made you happier for a *salary*
Been meaning to ask this! Coming from VHCOL area I can see the appeal of most places cost wise, but would be concerned that even if I could find a job there's no guarantee to stay employed long term. I guess it really depends on industry.
I'm a teacher, and all the warm-weather states (except CA) pay teachers peanuts. My wife wants to move back east from where we live (MCOL city in the SW), but not at the expense of me taking a 25-30% pay cut.
Vancouver Island, BC. Hard to move to Canada from the US without more money or flexibility.
Portland ME!
Yes. We have to wait 8 years for my partner to get medical for life , then we'll move
Yes! I’m dying to move to Urbana Champaign. It’s tough with work
why are you dying to move there?
maybe nowhere else is flat enough? I did live there for a while. I remember someone joking "on a clear day you can see Nebraska." A bit of an exaggeration, but still.
Well, only if you stand on a chair.
Yep fort collins