Southern California Job Market : Surviving the ‘90s : Job Hunting Outside the Southland : Sometimes the grass is greener--and the air cleaner, and the housing cheaper--somewhere way beyond the Los Angeles County line.
Bob Packer was sick and tired of Southern California. Born and raised on Los Angeles’ Westside, he had watched traffic grow worse, crime go up and air quality go down.
All these maladies were made even worse by his fruitless efforts to find a better job than the one he held as an assistant manager at a record store.
Although Packer had a two-year degree in accounting, he was competing for jobs with others who had bachelor’s and master’s degrees.
“I just couldn’t find a decent job,” said Packer, now 31. “And there was no way I was ever going to be able to buy a house in L.A.--not with the way prices had gone up.”
Fed up with it all, he packed up his family about two years ago and headed for Las Vegas. He got a job as a bookkeeper for a fast-growing home builder, earned a bachelor’s degree, was promoted to an accounting position and now earns close to $60,000 a year--three times the salary he was making when he left Los Angeles.
“I’ve never looked back,” Packer said. “Whenever I visit L.A. now, I can’t figure out why anybody would want to stay there.”
Like Packer, more than 200,000 people leave Southern California every year for greener pastures, according to the California Department of Finance. While that’s not near the number of new arrivals, there’s a significant trend in migration out of the Los Angeles area to other parts of the state or country.
Some of those who leave are looking for a better quality of life; others are looking for work. And for some, the high cost of Southland housing is the impetus for their move. Many renters who have been locked out of the pricey housing market here are fleeing to areas where homes are cheaper and their meager savings are still enough for a down payment.
Meantime, a growing number of equity-rich homeowners are cashing in and moving out, using their hefty profits to make big down payments on nicer homes in less expensive areas.
Of course, relocating has its drawbacks. It typically means leaving most of your family and friends behind, not to mention the Southland’s legendary weather, beaches and mountains.
Depending on where you go, you might even run into racial or religious prejudice or the “Go-back-to-California” mentality made infamous by the folks in Seattle.
If you’re willing to take these risks, you’ll want to learn a little more about your proposed destination. Here’s a rundown of some of the most popular spots among Southland refugees:
SACRAMENTO
“We’re the fastest-growing area in the state, and a lot of the people who are coming here are from Southern California,” said David Orosco, coordinator of economic development at the local chamber of commerce.
Orosco said many recent arrivals are seeking work in the area’s booming construction industry, growing high-tech business and vibrant agricultural center.
Others have been lured by the area’s still-affordable homes. Although prices in the area have zoomed nearly 50% over the past two years, the median-priced home in Sacramento is just $148,700--a far cry from the $215,533 it would take to buy the typical home in Los Angeles or the $245,798 it costs to purchase a residence in Orange County.
On the downside, some economists worry that the local economy will suffer if the state government--which accounts for about 33% of the jobs in the area--is forced to make deep cuts in spending to ease its budget crunch.
Summer in Sacramento can be brutally hot. And if baseball or football are a big part of your life, forget it: The state’s fourth-largest city doesn’t have a major league team in either sport.
SAN FRANCISCO
The Bay Area suffered through some tough times in the mid-1980s when its import/export business waned and financial services industry ran into trouble. But now they’ve bounced back, and job opportunities are growing again.
“The business services sector is especially strong,” said Frederick Cannon, senior economist for Bank of America. “That’s anything from data-processing companies to law firms.”
Adding to the city’s allure is its mild weather, beautiful bay and fabled culture.
On the downside, San Francisco is much more densely populated than Los Angeles and the cost of living is higher. And if you’re a conservative, you might not like the city’s liberal attitudes.
SEATTLE
“Don’t Californicate Seattle” is the battle cry in this picturesque city. The natives are tired of the estimated 30,000 Californians who move here each year and blame them for everything from worsening traffic to higher taxes.
Still, you can’t blame Southland refugees for coming. They like Seattle’s clean air, relatively low crime rate and growing cultural scene. The city’s unemployment rate stands at 3.9%--compared to 5.9% in Los Angeles--thanks mostly to Boeing Corp.’s soaring backlog of orders and the area’s fast-growing high-tech business.
Seattle, however, isn’t quite nirvana. It rains an average 160 days a year and local property taxes are soaring because of the run-up in housing prices.
“Our taxes are going up because all you people keep moving in,” complains Barry Martin, who runs a Seattle gas station. “We don’t appreciate it.”
PHOENIX
If you’re hoping to get a job here in real estate, banking or a related business, forget it. A sluggish economy and overbuilt real estate market have sent those types of jobs into the tank.
“There’s some good growth in service-related and retail jobs, though,” said Tom Rex, an economist at Arizona State University. “A lot of the jobs are fairly low-paying, but others actually pay quite well.”
Home prices in the Phoenix area have been dropping for several years, but now they may be poised for an uptick.
“I just bought a home with four bedrooms, two baths and a nice-sized yard for $87,000,” said Ken Plonski, a spokesman for Phoenix-based Del Webb Corp. “I wouldn’t have bought it if I thought I was going to lose money.”
Of course, summers in Phoenix are blistering: Weeks can go by before daytime temperatures drop below 100 degrees. Winters are mild but often smoggy.
LAS VEGAS
Sin City has become a boomtown. Its gaming business is thriving, high tech is starting to grow, and new homes and office buildings are rising faster than a gambler’s fever during a hot game.
“The economy is strong, and it looks like it’ll continue growing for the next several years,” said Harold Foster, director of the city’s community planning and development department.
There’s no state income tax in Nevada, so you get to keep more of your paycheck. Few cities offer a better variety of entertainment than Las Vegas, and you can dine and drink in the casinos on the cheap.
Although Las Vegas isn’t quite as dependent on the gaming business as it used to be, job opportunities in the city still tend to follow the ebb and flow of the big hotel/casinos. The local economy might falter if the country falls into a recession and people cut back on their entertainment, or if high gas prices keep visitors away.
RESOURCE: MAKING THE DECISION TO LEAVE
Relocating can be hazardous to your wealth, especially if you don’t do some homework first. Here are some tips that can help you avoid being disappointed with your decision to move:
* Make a list of all the things that are important to you. If you can’t bear the thought of leaving friends and family behind, you should probably stay put. Even if there are no ties that bind, make sure your proposed relocation spot can fulfill all of your cultural and recreational requirements.
* Visit your proposed new hometown at least two or three times, preferably during different seasons. This gives you a chance to see potential employers, drop off resumes and get a better idea of what life there would be like year-round.
* Try to get a new job lined up before you leave. Too many people quit work, sell their possessions, give up their home and move only to find out that their skills aren’t needed in their new community.
* Check out local educational facilities if you have children or plan to go back to school yourself. Visit the facilities and talk with administrators. Also ask for a tour of the school that your kids would attend: It can tell you a lot about the neighborhood.
* Ask realtors about local home prices or rental rates. Salaries are usually lower in smaller cities, so you’ll need a corresponding drop in housing expenses and overall living costs to break even financially.
* Supplement your own research with books. “Places Rated Almanac” (Prentice Hall; $16.95) ranks nearly 350 metropolitan areas on factors from climate to crime rates. “The Rating Guide to Life in America’s Small Cities” (Prometheus Books; $16.95) rates 219 cities too small to be considered metropolitan areas.
