Job security

[ymba]

wow, I never realized this subject I brought up got so many freaks talking about their personal situation.

I just got off the phone with abuddy of mine who works for AT & T and he tells me even though APPLE sold " 7 million IPHONE4 todate" AT & T is taking it up the shorts with deliquent payments

What is happening is all those " got to get an Iphone fans " bought them with a heavy subsidy from Apple for $199 only to not pay their bills after 2 months and guess what, now they just kept their $500 phone with AT & T stuck with the lost on the phone

It is crazy out there.. people are in danger of losing their jobs while you got so many people taking advantage of the system

 

[hairlesswookiee]

Well that's easy to say when you don't live and work in an area with high real estate values. I suppose I could find a house for around that - but then I would need to commute a couple hours every day.

How much real estate is going for where you live is not my problem. What the costs of homes where I live is what I'm concerned about. There's million dollar homes being sold 10 minutes away from where I live, and the average house costs $175k and up around here and keeps going up. New homes are going for $250 and up from what I've been seeing around town. And this is thanks to the big nosedive in values after the oil spill. It was calculated that the average value plummeted by $50k.

 

[The Ween]

Though I'm okay now, I have no idea what the future holds. I may end up in a cardboard box because I won't be able to afford my house. It takes two incomes to make ends meet in these parts and I'll only have one in the future. Though I've put money away over the years, with costs going up and up, I'm sure it won't last long. I try not to worry about something I may not have any control of, but it's hard.

Oh, and if I lose my job, I can't get unemployment because I'm classified as a 9 month employee.

 

[Sweet Rabbit]

location location location

You hear Los Angeles getting hit hard by the real estate market...but few realize how LARGE Los Angeles is. As a lifetime resisident..I can easily tell you where to buy...but in a good area, a fixer is 650k...its amazing. Early 90's you could buy a home in the same area for 300k. I really don't think prices will ever be that cheap again...that is in "certain areas" of Los Angeles. In the valley, you can find something for 300k...but the valley is the valley...lol.

I am in the same situation as Jen...lucked out and put down a chit load of cash for a modest home in a good location (almost 8 yrs ago before the bubble grew and popped)...im a goverment lacky with over 8yrs senority and my wife has over 11 yrs. with LAUSD..were in good shape.

ilmao...$650K here will get you a 5000 sq ft house + land

 

[hairlesswookiee]

ilmao...$650K here will get you a 5000 sq ft house + land

Yeah that's why I like living in the South. The prices are pretty much what they are where you are. Georgia is pretty good to. I was thinking about moving to the Atlanta area a while back.

 

[devlinboy]

I am house hunting myself, in NY. Nassau county. Stupid expensive. All i want is some land, i will build the house up to snuff over the next 20 years if i have too. But everything here starts at 400k. Its hard to get ahead.

 

[The Craw]

i don't have a job. i just fall ass backwards into all kinds of monies all the time. i'm kinda like Kramer on Seinfeld.

 

[Deadly Dagger]

ilmao...$650K here will get you a 5000 sq ft house + land

I'm sure thats very true...but can I make the same amount of $$$ as I do in LA if I were to relocate to ohio?

 

[Jen]

I'm sure thats very true...but can I make the same amount of $$$ as I do in LA if I were to relocate to ohio?

Probably not. I was in southern Idaho about a month ago and I saw some beautiful homes for sale that were priced under 200K. I would also be making probably 1/2 of what I make up here. So I guess it's all relative. Higher real estate/cost of living usually means higher paying jobs - so we are all probably paying a similar % on mortgages in relation to our salary.

 

[Darth Madden]

Probably not. I was in southern Idaho about a month ago and I saw some beautiful homes for sale that were priced under 200K. I would also be making probably 1/2 of what I make up here. So I guess it's all relative. Higher real estate/cost of living usually means higher paying jobs - so we are all probably paying a similar % on mortgages in relation to our salary.

Yeah, doesn't WA have the highest minimum wage in the country so people definitely make more here so the market reflects that.

 

[Jen]

Yeah, doesn't WA have the highest minimum wage in the country so people definitely make more here so the market reflects that.

I think so. I was surprised to hear that our teachers make $60K-$80K! Good for them!!

 

[The Mike]

80K? Hot Damn. Our teachers start at 32K and to get to 70 would take approximately 12 years of service in the same district.

 

[DinoDB1975]

My job is pretty safe. I would basically have to commit a felony, threaten to kill someone, or punch the boss to get fired.

Lemme guess, federal employee?

Mine is a gov't job.

Thought so.

Freaks

Here is a Q for you. If you get fired ( terminated) ,can you collect unemployment ? Or must you be layed off to get the max of $2000 ? By the way, noone should want to live on$2000 a month. my mortgage alone is over that .

Yes, it is bad out there. i have been with my company for 16yrs as a sales maanger so I guess I know what I am doing but with revenue down and the company not hiring, it is scary times

Thank god we have a bit of money saved and I plan my life ok

If you are terminated for cause, you cannot colect unemployment. However, if you are terminated due to a reduction in force, you can file for unemployment.

Yeah, but that's the problem. You're in the very low minority of people that put a large down payment. Most people that are paying $3k a month on a mortgage put nothing down, and are financing the entire $300k that they paid for the house. Personally, I'd never buy a house that is more than $200k, and I'd never pay more than $1500 a month for a mortgage.

Unfortunately, I wish there were single family houses in Northern VA for that amount. Any townhouses under $350 K is considered cheap. Decent single family homes in Northern VA run $400 K and up. Hard to afford that on one income. I make a great salary for a single guy, not so good for a family of five.

I bought four years before the crash in real estate. My house was 500K. When we bought we had instant equity in our house, our house being appraised at 650K. Our payments are roughly $2700 p/m, the fantastic benefit of living in the Bay Area. Since the crash a house similar to mine is $300K. If my wife or I ever actually lost our jobs for whatever reason bye-bye house. Hindsight is 20/20 and the biggest mistake I ever made was not waiting longer to get into my house.

It's a catch 22, Mike. Part of me is glad I didn't rush into buying a house, but I also realized it may be harder for me to get a loan now that the heydey of the real estate market is over.

 

[The Mike]

That's definitely true, to get our loan we only had to put down a dollar. Now in our area if you want a new house you must put down 3% to get even the paperwork started, 10% on an older house.

 

[hairlesswookiee]

I think so. I was surprised to hear that our teachers make $60K-$80K! Good for them!!

I don't want to take this off topic, but teachers should still get more for what they do. It's pathetic how much doctors make when they spend so little face time with their patients, yet teachers get squat in comparison for what they have to do on a daily basis.

 

[devlinboy]

That's definitely true, to get our loan we only had to put down a dollar. Now in our area if you want a new house you must put down 3% to get even the paperwork started, 10% on an older house.

i believe it is 20% down for a house around here

 

[automaton]

I'm sure thats very true...but can I make the same amount of $$$ as I do in LA if I were to relocate to ohio?

totally... it's not like we are being held captive in "Hotel California"... the lifestyle, culture and earning potential justify the real estate prices.

 

[The Mike]

I know for a fact that teachers make the same amount of cash in Texas, in fact there is a joke that all teachers from CA end up relocating there because of the cost of living. I'd do it except I have no desire to live in Texas...

Seattle is more my scene but I have a feeling I'll be a California Boy until they put me in the ground.

 

[azurepred]

No they are not. They are cutting back on police forces left and right here in WA.

They are secured everywhere else.

Not in Ca as well...........hella cops and firefighters were layed off awhile ago in No. Cali.............hella, while stupid small city board members do nothing all day and bring in $300K a year. This state is controlled by a bunch of idiots, one just replaces the next.

 

[Ultimate Weapon]

It's all perspective on where you want to live and what it's worth to you as well.

I spent fifteen years of my childhood growing up in Ohio and I now live in Seattle. I don't care how cheap things are in Ohio by comparison, I'm never moving back to that part of the country. Too many things I didn't like about the area and the Pacific Northwest culture falls in line with my ideals much better. So no matter how much less I can get for my money here in regards to housing, it's worth what the area has to offer for me to stay.

On the job front, I graduated with my Masters in Architecture in May '09 - talk about the worst timing ever. I have yet to do any work in the field beyond an internship I had as a student. So I haven't been laid off, but I can't even get into my field and I'm still working the same caliber of lame jobs that prompted me to return to school in the first place.

On the bright side it's prompting me to think of ways that I can be more independent in my career and have control over how I live my life rather than devoting my time to a particular firm/company/agency.