Nursing is my oyster...now where to live

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It has been said many times on these boards that nursing is a whole world of opportunity. As someone who will be graduating soon I am begining to look at various opportunities. Perhaps some of the experienced nurses or even travel nurses would like to share where they think some of the best places to train, work, and live are.

Thanks.

i still don't understand the florida bashing....i'm an LPN and make $22.00 an hour and i pay $1000 a month to rent a 4 bedroom, 2 bath, living room, family room, laundry room, fenced in yard house in a lovely neighborhood.

can't beat that with a stick!! lol

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
i still don't understand the florida bashing....i'm an LPN and make $22.00 an hour and i pay $1000 a month to rent a 4 bedroom, 2 bath, living room, family room, laundry room, fenced in yard house in a lovely neighborhood.

can't beat that with a stick!! lol

Renting is throwing your money away. All the rent money you're paying simply makes the property owner wealthier. In my honest opinion, it is better to own your own little corner of the world.
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Specializes in ER, PACU, CORRECTIONAL HEALTH, FLIGHT.

yeah i gotta agree there........if you plan to stay somewhere BUY. if you can afford $1000/month rent, shoot, you can get a mortgage at that rate, and develop equity.

i rent here in GA but that's only cuz i am moving back to Texas...have NO desire to own here. but you bet once i get settled back in Texas i will buy, so i can have some equity and tax relief!!!!!!!!!!!

and you dont need a down payment-there are ways to buy without it! and even poor credit!

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I'm not sure where you are renting a 4 bedroom house for $1,000/month. Around here (Brandon area just outside of Tampa) I am not even able to find a 3 bedroom apartment that rents at that price. The 2 bedroom apartments with one bath are around $850/month if not more. The 3's jump to about $1,200/month for an apartment. Consider yourself extremely lucky to have found a nice house in a good neighborhood with 4 bedrooms for that price! The real estate boom here has caused trashy houses that should be priced around $100,000 or less to go for around $180,000 and that's a low figure. Average okay houses around here are priced over $200,000. Check out the prices in other areas and see what you get for $200,000. You'll be amazed at the difference.

If you like Florida, that's great! I was just giving my opinion because I actually like to see grass, trees, and forest sometimes.

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I agree with the above posters about renting being a waste of money, I should know, that's all I've ever done. And with the housing situation as it is in Southern California, I'll probably keep renting. It's really sad that I was born and raised in LA and despite having a BSN and making decent money, I'm still priced out of SoCal. I can't even afford Compton on my own. :(

I've actually been giving a lot of thought to moving to Texas, Dallas or Houston. Is anyone from The Woodlands, Texas? I've become fascinated by this community and would love to hear some feedback about it. I LOVE LOVE LOVE living in LA, but I'd like to be a homeowner some day, I just don't think it's realistic here.

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Specializes in Ortho/Neurosurgical.
I'm not sure where you are renting a 4 bedroom house for $1,000/month. Around here (Brandon area just outside of Tampa) I am not even able to find a 3 bedroom apartment that rents at that price. The 2 bedroom apartments with one bath are around $850/month if not more. The 3's jump to about $1,200/month for an apartment. Consider yourself extremely lucky to have found a nice house in a good neighborhood with 4 bedrooms for that price! The real estate boom here has caused trashy houses that should be priced around $100,000 or less to go for around $180,000 and that's a low figure. Average okay houses around here are priced over $200,000. Check out the prices in other areas and see what you get for $200,000. You'll be amazed at the difference.

If you like Florida, that's great! I was just giving my opinion because I actually like to see grass, trees, and forest sometimes.

Just to clarify, not Florida bashing, ....I moved here for many reasons. However 4 years ago when I moved here and how it is now are two different things. We rent a 2/2 house about 1 hour north of Tampa and it is 850, the only reason it is that cheap is because my uncle owns the house and uses it for tax write off reasons. Other than that, we tried to move back to Pinellas County and just simply can't afford it. If you have a 4 bedroom for 1k then you're lucky. Very very lucky, get out and look (when is the last time you looked) and you will see that it is tough to find a place for that price anywhere. And 22 an hour isn't that much to be honest either......I know in New England you can get a nice house for 250-300k but make alot more than that. Anyhow, I still say avoid FL unless you have a ton of equity in a house already that you can reinvest in a house here. Plus, there is no such thing as "acreage" here either, I can throw a rock to any given neighbors house.

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Specializes in NICU.
I just moved to Colorado and I love it! It has the most perfect weather (sunny all the time), and so much to do outdoors and indoors. The people here are very laid back and friendly, and many moved here from other areas of the country so they're open to welcoming new friends. Pay here for nurses is average - at least for new grads. None of those fancy $5,000 signing bonuses. (But they really don't have to offer bonuses because so many people want to move here.) But, it's definitely liveable. I make it work. Cost of living here isn't too bad. Lots of great hospitals too, many of which are regional centers that serve the sickest of surrounding western states. You can nurse anywhere, so you have the luxury of choosing where you want to live. Go for the place that fits your lifestyle.

Hi Anne! I live in SE Colorado (in the Lamar/LaJunta area) and the pay is not so great (I think the avg. is only about $16.00/hr for RNs at the hospitals). Of course, cost of living is low, low, low too! However, I lived in the rockies for 7 years and miss them terribly! I just got into nursing school, but would plan on moving after I graduate and would like to know an approximate area of where you are and if you can comfortably afford to live on your nursing salary? I have always been afraid I could never afford to live in the mountains again - we had to move away because of cost of living in the first place. If you don't mind me asking, what do you make and what are your expenses (you can pm me if you prefer)? Don't answer if you don't feel comfortable or give me ballparks or whatever, however I really would appreciate anything you would feel comfortable telling me!

Thanks so much! :)

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
I've actually been giving a lot of thought to moving to Texas, Dallas or Houston. Is anyone from The Woodlands, Texas? I've become fascinated by this community and would love to hear some feedback about it. I LOVE LOVE LOVE living in LA, but I'd like to be a homeowner some day, I just don't think it's realistic here.
After living in southern California all my life, I moved to Texas 6 months ago. The nursing salaries are decent in the major metro areas and brand new homes can be purchased for $100,000 to $150,000. I don't know much about the Woodlands, but I live in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area and it is great here. I bought my new 1,900 square foot house for $104,000 in October '05.
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Specializes in Education, Acute, Med/Surg, Tele, etc.

Hey...a thought here, but if you do your research like I did...I was able to buy some good land for a song, and put a manufactured home on it! If you have seen manufactured homes lately...they are GORGEOUS! Mine is huge, energy efficient (which we really need now a day!), and it is my dream home!

If you research well...you can buy good land inexpensively dependant on what type of area you wish to live in. Best to look for developed land (one with elec/water/septic already done (oh what a nightmare that was to put it all in with the county I worked in.....ahhhhh they were crazy!)...but it was awesome!

I got a almost 2 acre wooded lush area at the foothills of the coastal mountains in Oregon for 60,000, and the house was 180,000! Yeah it seems like a lot, but if you are going to buy a home and be in debt for 30-40 years anyway...best to bargan shop within reason...and we got that big time! (my house is a triple, open floor plan, huge kitchen, garden tub in the masters, large masters and walk in closet and retreat room, two kids bedrooms, a walk in pantry, mud/utility room, and my father has his own room with private bath all in one room! Oh we sooooo scored! Finish off with a formal entry room, dinning room, reading area off the dining room, and den near the kitchen with fireplace and too huge for me to even furnish right now! LOL!

Yep...300,000 loan, but look at what I got! Good investment...just had to research well and well...get a little stern with the powers that were..LOL!

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OK... here is the final word on THE perfect place to live. Think high desert. Low humidity. No bugs (Florida and Texas!!! you can saddle up and ride the cockroaches! I live at 4600 ft. above sea level. My dogs don't get fleas, we have no fire ants, we don't even have mosquitoes. We have four seasons, moderate summers (with deliciously cool evenings) Great scenery and recreation choices. (I've lived in WI. where it's too cold to SNOW most of the winter and it has to warm up before you get the spring blizzards!!! Now... Nevada (like Texas) has no income tax. Reno area is the Eastern side of Lake Tahoe but unlike California, we have rational state government.

Right IN Reno, real estate is expensive, but there are still some good buys and if you CAN get a home, prices are still rising, no bubble in sight, you'll not lose money on any purchase. Further out from Reno (but with good highway access, easy drive) are more reasonable homes for purchase.

Pay is good. Don't get too sold on the mandatory 5:1 ratio in CA. Hospitals aren't obliged to give you unit clerks, patient transport, round-the-clock respiratory therapy, etc. etc. If the institution wants to cut back on their personnel budget, they'll find a way and you'll be stuck with no ancillary support.

Yeah, look into Northern Nevada.

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Specializes in ER (My favorite), NICU, Hospice.
TEXAS HANDS DOWN!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Good salaries, lots of opportunity, no state income tax, friendly folks, cheap real estate and land, and good lookin cowboys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! cant wait to get back!

Gosh now I think i'm moving!!!!

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Specializes in PICU, SICU,MICU.

I travelled a bit. Loved California, yet very expensive. If you are looking into midwest at all (Yes I know our winters are cold!) Cincinnati Childrens Hospital Medical Center was such an awesome experience to work in. It is your big level 1 trauma center/transplant center. Very busy in the PICU, but the nurses are amazing.

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