Quandary

[polekaat]

Hey folks.
I lost my job two weeks ago so I haven't been online much. Really enjoying the time off and getting some projects finished around the house. I have several job offers on the table, including a couple back up in Denver. The other options are; Anchorage, Ak., Helena, Mt., Bellingham, Wa., Midland, TX. and a couple here in Houston. I've told them all that I'm loyal to the highest bidder. My wife wants me to take one of the Denver positions, but the money is $16/hr less than here in Houston and they want to pay straight time for overtime. The cost of housing in Denver and Anchorage is about double what it is here and there is also a state income tax to contend with in Denver.

I really want to be in some gold bearing country, and all the places but TX have that available. I will have to make a decision this week and then the logistics nightmare will hit me.

Anchorage pays about the same as Houston, but I don't know if I can talk Christina into going there.

Out of these options, which one would you choose, and why?

Thanks
Trevor

[gremlin]

i would tell Denver, how much there under the market. ask them to come up to speed. i have seen that played out be for. there is a company in Nevada. starting wage there is 11 bucks a hour. sounds good till you find out there crying because they can not find any one with a doctorates in machine tool and die will not work for that price.

[russau]

Sorry to hear of your job loss! is it a permanant loss? another item to watch for is your health insurance. ive read where companys are now trending to eliminating a employees spouse on the insurance.they think theres plenty of people out there to replace you if you dont like it and now theyll take whatever is out there! when i was in Alaska, most people up there had several seasonal jobs(2-3) to make ends meet!Goodluck Trev!

[Hoser John]

Winter will be there in Alaska in short order and that's not good. Mind boggling cold,snow, NO SUN yuck and the longest winter than anywhere the US. I've never even been to Denver myself but if good enough for leonard,good enough for me. John

[DJR]

So what was the question?
You stay with who ever pays you the most and has the best job out look (how long it will last).
You sock as much of the money away for retirement as you can. Invest it for the max return. If you are under 50 put the max in an ROTH IRA, no taxes when you withdraw in retirement.

[h20prospector]

I live in Colorado Springs, and the reason the pay is lower than say Texas, my oldest just move back here from New Jersey they pay good too, is there are so many military retirees that want to keep working after they retire. There willing to take say half the pay, skip on the insurance 'cause they have TriCare through the military, etc. I can't speak for Denver, but I would assume they have a fair amount of military & civilian retirees that are doing the same thing. Both Lowry AFB and Fitzsimons Army Medical Center in Denver were close in the mid 90's

Personally I would do like DJR says. You can always plan a vacation to the gold company here. Hoser is right about Alaska, plus the cost of living has got to be through the roof. When you pay about $8.00 for a gallon of water, or so I hear,......enough said.

Just my two cents on the subject.

By the way, I'm one of those military retirees, and I also draw social security.

[gremlin]

some one must be pulling your leg. military retirees, i know all want the good pay. i have lots of them here for a small town. they all work for sub contractors. one guy here takes off for a month with his grandkids. you can bet he is not working for cheep. renting a rv, on every trip they take in the states.

[OKJohn]

Trevor,

OkaY. i'll bite on your question.

Personally, I would stay away from Midland and Anchorage. AK would be great for an extended vacation, but the shock of moving my family to the nether regions like that would be really tough. And Midland is too far from anything.

Denver would be wonderful, but $16/hr + high cost of living adds up really fast.

So that leaves Helena, Bellingham, and Houston.

Helena: Stunning in the summer. But there would be a long, cold winter. One big positive to this town is a long history of placer gold.

Bellingham: Stunning in the spring-fall. But cool, dreary, and rainy much of the winter and early spring. Right on the ocean, and accessible to the mountains. Probably a lot of the yuppy crowd up there, so might not find many gold opportunities.

Houston: It could be a whole lot worse.

I agree with several others - follow the money and the security. But if that is the same at Helena, Bellingham, and Houston... Hmmm... Tough choice.

I would pick Helena.

[gremlin]

if you want Denver, tell them how much you will work for and see if they bite. if not check the other places and see what one will bring you more bang for the buck.

[h20prospector]

some one must be pulling your leg. military retirees, i know all want the good pay. i have lots of them here for a small town. they all work for sub contractors. one guy here takes off for a month with his grandkids. you can bet he is not working for cheep. renting a rv, on every trip they take in the states.

Sure everyone want's good pay and some retirees do work for military contractors and no one is pulling my leg. Not looking for a fight, or picking one. I'm simply stating a fact. Wages here tend to be low across the board. There are good paying job here, but lots of people are looking and applying. Some due hold out for the best jobs, and even get a wage commensurate with their abilities, but then there are a lot of retired artillery types, infantry, and tank drivers. Demand is not there. Lots of call centers here though.

In Colorado Springs, military retirees exist in large numbers, as well as veterans. AKA a military town. Because of this, and the skill sets we have, employers are looking to hire us, but set the wages low. This affects the civilians. Because a military retiree already draws retired pay, and are eligible for TriCare, Medicare and Tricare, and TriCare for life, lots of jobs come with NO BENEFITS. Some of us are eligible to receive treatment in a military facility. Ft Carson Evans Community Hospital offers everything one would want, but due to the numbers of soldiers returning from the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, and have some awful war wounds, active duty are first in line for most of the clinics.

Bottom line, military retires make up a large number of the population here, employers know this, and they set the wages low.

Most of us plan for a vacation, as well as save up. Even those with low paying jobs.