MOVING: NJ to Florida

[RL0206]

To All,

Just wanted to say hi and what a wonderful board this is!. I am in the works of possibly moving my family (wife *RN and 2 kids of whom are 6 and 12) to Florida, Central Florida to be exact.

I am in the middle of doing my research as well as speaking with family members who live there and a Co-worker of mine who moved there a few years back (Florida Hospital Winter Park). They can attest to the drop of income which for me would be about 40%. Both my wife and I have a few Years experience under our belts which should help us land a job or two, particularly looking at ORMC (Trauma/ICU) and or FH. I have been told there may be a few more hospitals opening soon IE: Nemours, so job opportunites should be,OK.

I know the pay will not be what my family is used to going from $110k to about $65k per earner will be a big drop, BUT our expenses, in particular our housing will also be gone (mortgage ALONE right now is $3650.00 Northern NJ thats with Taxes and principal). School would also be public but we are research neighborhoods with great school systems.

Anywho, I just wanted to ask what information should I look into in terms of moving costs, renters insurance, rentals, ORMC vs FH etc. Any advice you guys may have to offer. Lastly I just want to make it clear that although it is a big drop in pay, our lifestyle and expectations are for our kids. Costs are skyrocketing up here in NJ while pay although what some may call high is not keeping up (schools, rentals, mortgages etc.) Thanks all, any and all advice are welcome.

PS: My wife and I will also be going there on Sept. for a few days to try and set up some interviews and look around even more in person.

[ukjenn231]

I know that Florida Hospital hires experienced nurses often, they sometimes have job fairs and when I was looking for a job in Central Florida while in Kentucky they did phone interviews for me as the first step. You may call and talk to their recruiter. I think the starting pay was low to mid twenties per hour. I've seen advertisements for signing bonuses and relo packages there too.