RN salary and cost of living in Sacramento area

U.S.A. California

Published

Hi guys,

I was just hoping for some input from nurses in the Sacramento area. My partner and I, who are both nurses, are looking to relocate from the Seattle-Tacoma area to possibly the Sacramento area. She is currently an LPN and will graduate this summer with her RN. I work as an Ambulatory Care RN for a health organization very similar to Kaiser and have 5 years of RN experience.

We are looking to relocate because of the weather. We cannot endure the rain and cloudy skies anymore. We were interested in the Bay area, but we were concerned about the cost of living and crossed that area off our list. We were considering the Sacramento area because home costs seemed much more reasonable, and the weather is much more conducive to our lifestyle. We are outdoorsy people with 2 dogs and teenagers. I am finding as I get older that the sun really has an affect on my quality of life.

We are tempted to move, but want to make sure that we are not in over our heads. WA state has no state income tax, and I have heard that California is very expensive. I currently work 72 hours per pay period and make $33.59/hour with a take home of approximately $1700 per paycheck after union dues, health benefits and retirement is taken out. My partner will be making a little less since she will be a new grad RN.

We were wondering if you Sacramento nurses liked living and working there, and if you felt that you had a good work life balance? If so, what areas would you recommend? And how much are the RN starting wages generally in addition to take home pay?

Thanks so much in advance for reading this post. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. :)

Just a heads up for your spouse. Since she will be a new grad she will have a pretty hard time finding a job (search the forums). I know jobs are hard to come by in Tacoma / Seattle but if she can find employment up there i would get some experience and then look down here. I definitely wouldn't move without her securing a position (many new grads are waiting 1-2 years for jobs, if not longer).

UC Davis, a big employer in the area has their pay scale online, you should be able to google exactly what your pay will be if you work in the area.

Also, check out Davis, Ca as an alternative to Sacramento. It's a very family friendly city and is a great college town.

Thanks so much for your response gunrock. I agree with you about maybe staying here a little longer and allowing her to get experience. I have put up with the rain most of my life what's a few more years of grey rainy weather. I will check out the UC Davis website.

Have you looked into the Palm Springs/Palm Desert area? We definitely have plenty of sun, one reason I'm looking to head your way in a couple years. It's hard to leave my hospital though, the pay is great. You'd make around $40/hr here, plus differentials. Housing is going up but you can still get a pretty nice place, with a pool even for around 250k. My hospital is hiring right now, trying to get nurses trained over the slow season, summer. It's more challenging but not impossible to get hired as a new grad, my floor alone has hired three in the last year.

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