I'm cross posting this from the Travel Nursing section...

0Hi all!

I'm a NICU RN with 9 years experience. I've always worked as a regular, NOC shift employee. I'm moving my family of 4 from Santa Cruz, CA to Portland, OR in July. I put my resume on Indeed while I wait for endorsement, and have been inundated by calls from Travel Nursing agencies who are "impressed with my resume" and are telling me they can set me up with a 13 week contract to get us there and then help me with per diem or get hired on as a regular employee after the contract. It's appealing to have housing paid for in the school district of our choice while we buy our own home but I worry about stability once the contract is up, not to mention home financing based on contract nursing rather than permanent.

I'm also considering pediatric home health through an agency but worry the pay would be too low. I'm the sole breadwinner (for now) and it seems like I won't have any trouble finding work in the metro area but any advice is appreciated. My main objective is to get OFF night shifts and have a better work/life balance while my kids are still young! I'll be leaving behind an awesome job making a base rate of $71/hr plus shift diff but even that won't buy us a house in Santa Cruz plus I'll be stuck on NOCs here at least 15 more years!😩 Is $75k a year too much to expect in Portland? I will also have my IBCLC next year but I don't see many lactation jobs posted for the area. Is it saturated with lactation consultants?

Im starting at square one knowing little to nothing about the different agencies and contracts but so far I've spoken with Maxim, PSA, Integrated, and Prolink.

(I know there's a lot to unpack here but again, any advice is appreciated! Thanks!)

Can't comment on NICU, lactation nursing, or whether a travel contract is a good place for you to start, but with 9 years experience you should have no problem pulling $75k in base pay working in-patient. Hourly rates at most hospitals in the metro area are currently running $33-$50/hr. I would get in touch with a real estate agent up here ASAP though because the Portland housing market is still red hot. People are still putting in bids $20-$30k above asking price for starter homes in the metro area.