Best place in US to be an RN?

Nurses General Nursing

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I'm still in school and am considering moving after graduation (and getting some work experience). Every place I look, though, either pays slightly more than a babsitter or else the nurses all sound embittered and like they're looking for a different field. Is there any place in the US where a nurse can receive a decent wage relative to the cost of living, while also having a reasonable work environment?

Specializes in Cardiac, Critical Care, LTC.

as a brand new RN, i would have to say dallas and the surrounding area, I just received ny 1st paycheck, and I was very happy

If you can take the snow and cold, Madison is a great place to live and starting pay for new grads is 28.00/hour + differentials!

California is the only state in the union with legally-mandated rations for acute care hospitals. An RN in California cannot be assigned to more than 5 patients on a typical med/surg floor. While the cost-of-living is sky-high, the pay rates tend to be competitive.

Yeap, ratios are great. Unfortunately, in many areas, nurses are not compensatetd quite well for the COL ( just think central coast or San Diego). California is smoking me out quite literally.:chuckle

TX seems quite good to nurses but why is so much higher than the other states? Makes me wonder...:confused:

If nurses in Dallas and Houston make that good of money, they can buy a 3,000 sq ft. Home for under 300k while here in the Bay Area, that will get you at most a 3bd 2 bath, 1,200 depending on how close it is to SF.

Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
Yeap, ratios are great. Unfortunately, in many areas, nurses are not compensatetd quite well for the COL ( just think central coast or San Diego). California is smoking me out quite literally.:chuckle

TX seems quite good to nurses but why is liability insurance so much higher than the other states? Makes me wonder...:confused:

This is the reason I left my home state of California nearly 3 years ago. I live in Texas, and am paid more money than many of my fellow LVNs who still live and work in California.

The is higher in Texas for a reason...it is one of the most litigious states in the union for medical malpractice. The vast majority of the malpractice lawsuits are concentrated in the Rio Grande Valley, near the border with Mexico.

I lived in Houston for 19 years, it is a great place housing wise, but the traffic and the weather are both horrific (heat and humidity, 90+ you can expect from about April thru October). I never practiced nursing there, but I know nurses make much more money there than they do where I work (PA). It also looks like many of them offer very decent benefits package, including very generous tuition reimbursement for schooling (to get the BSN or MSN) - something along the lines of 5-6K PER SEMESTER (whereas here fulltime employees only get 2K per YEAR). Schooling is also considerably cheaper there than in many other parts of the country.

In the area of West Houston specifically (where I lived and my parents still live) is really experiencing a boom and growth of a second medical center with many of the large downtown hospitals building West Houston campuses brand new.

My mother recently had surgery at a brand new campus in West Houston, and I would say most of the staff, nurses, were bilingual b/c at least 50% or more of their patients were spanish speaking. So being bilingual not only would be extremely helpful, but really necessary. You would run across this same issue all across TX but also in San Antonio and Dallas as well.

Good luck!

How about California?

1) There is a legally-mandated patient-nurse ratio law.

2) The housing market is affordable now considering their high salary. My house in Texas has increased its market value that it is almost comparable to the prices of houses in California. Note that California salary didn't go down, when the housing market started to crash.

3) Great weather, low humidity, lots of trees, near the ocean.

4) Much diversity, lots of activities even during summer.

5) Property tax is lower in California than in Texas. (well, Texas doesn't have state tax - so it may even out on that aspect.)

I, myself, doesn't know where to go:confused:. Move to California or stay in Texas? Any inputs are welcome.

Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
I, myself, doesn't know where to go:confused:. Move to California or stay in Texas? Any inputs are welcome.
I'm a native Californian who is now living in Texas. My extended family still lives back home in CA.

The only truly affordable region of CA is the Central Valley (Fresno, Bakersfield, Sacramento, Modesto, Stockton, Visalia, Madera, etc.). In most of the aforementioned cities, home prices have recently plummeted below the $200,000 mark, which is considered dirt-cheap in California.

While I loved living in the Central Valley, it is not the California everyone knows and loves from the movies. Many parts are rural with miles of fields, dairy farms, and cow pastures. My parents live in one of the previously mentioned cities, and the temperature is currently 105 degrees with no relief until early September. The electricity is more expensive in this region, and fuel prices are $4.55 per gallon for regular unleaded gas.

Hi. I am actually a new RN living in Bakersfield and getting ready to move to Texas. I am curious as to the pay rate. I will be going to the Austin area. I am unsure as to where you are located, but any input would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much for your time. :D

Specializes in STaff Nurse Hospital, ED, L&D,.
i have found that houston is top of the list.

i plan i move when i finish school, and we are really looking at texas.

ashley

just completed a management rotation, and managers stated that money for new grads is limited. be ready to sell yourself, galveston has just begun hiring again and many of them are still here and have the experience to not have to compete with new grads. many hospitals are not even doing internships this year. check out the houston advance for nurses for more information. that is where i read it today!:cry: it makes me sad as i prepare to graduate in may.

Specializes in PACU, Surgery, Acute Medicine.
Hi. I am actually a new RN living in Bakersfield and getting ready to move to Texas. I am curious as to the pay rate. I will be going to the Austin area. I am unsure as to where you are located, but any input would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much for your time. :D

In the neighborhood of $20 an hour base, plus differentials for nights/weekends. Openings in Austin, as in many places, are limited. I hope you're already in touch with some recruiters!

Is this limited to the West? Personally, I don't think there is enough money to convince me to move my family to Texas. I simply can't stand the heat & humidity. I hate the A/C too...it gives me a headache. The Madison, WI suggestion sounds great!

I currently am schooling in MD, and Balt/DC area is still good for new grads w/comp. wags and decent housing in suburbs (Balt. City is hopping if you're single or DINK), lots of diversity and entertainment, et cet. I want to head somewhere above the Mason Dixon line after I get a couple years of experiance. Thinking PA, MI, ME, WI, MN, MT....:thnkg::thnkg:

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