salary--dfw

mymomisanurse · Sep 25, 2007

Actually, studies have proven that Texas ranks #1 in the nation for RN wages after cost-of-living adjustments have been made.
I am a native Californian who lived in that state for 24 years before moving here in late 2005. Most of the nurses that I knew in Cali were either renting apartments, leasing houses, living with family members, or took in roommates to be able to afford to live in certain areas. The nurses who could afford homes typically had spouses who earned a lot more money than them.
Nurses, in my opinion, are solidly middle-class. However, some nurses have decided to live the upper-class lifestyle, thereby taking on more financial obligations than their earnings can handle. I'm living nicely in this state because I ACT MY WAGE. I live in an 1,800 square foot newer home, not a 5,000 square foot mini mansion. I drive a 2006 Toyota Corolla and 2005 Chevrolet Silverado truck, not a Cadillac Escalade or BMW sportscar.
Nurses will get into dire trouble if they attempt to live like royalty on their middle incomes.

I still will miss my big paychecks even though the cost of living is suppossedly cheaper. You must have lived in southern cali, because where I live at, even new grad nurses are buying houses. my girlfriend that purchased a house and she is a single parent of 4. The pay here has kept up with the price of houses. since I started working I've received an 8% and a 7% pay raise not including yearly 3% pay raises

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Sep 25, 2007

I still will miss my big paychecks even though the cost of living is suppossedly cheaper

The cost of living in Texas is not "supposedly cheaper." It is significantly cheaper, even when one factors in the oppressive ISD property tax.

My parents sold their 1,100 square foot home (built in 1962) for $435,000 in Southern California. The same home would have cost less than $100,000 in most parts of TX. Is the cost of living cheaper? Heck yes!

People in my So. Cal hometown are paying $1,500 monthly to rent 1-bedroom apartments. The same apartments rent for $600 to $700 monthly here in TX.

California pays their nurses significantly more but, unless the nurse lives in a sorry Central Valley town amid the cow dung, the supposedly "good money" and "big paychecks" are typically eroded by the expensive cost of living in that state.

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Sep 25, 2007

I still will miss my big paychecks even though the cost of living is suppossedly cheaper. You must have lived in southern cali, because where I live at, even new grad nurses are buying houses. my girlfriend that purchased a house and she is a single parent of 4. The pay here has kept up with the price of houses. since I started working I've received an 8% and a 7% pay raise not including yearly 3% pay raises

I lived in Southern California for 22 years, more specifically Ventura County.

I lived in Bakersfield from 2003 to 2005, and was able to purchase a home there as a single female with a moderate income. Back in 2003, my 2-story house cost $145,000. Today, the same home is worth $300,000.

You cannot compare the Central Valley to NorCal or SoCal. The cost of living is higher in NorCal and SoCal, because those are the places where people wish to live. Many of the Central Valley towns (Delano, Visalia, Fresno, Bakersfield, Modesto, Hanford, Tulare) have a certain degree of undesirability, and people tend to move there because they have been priced out of all of the other areas in Cali.

mymomisanurse · Sep 25, 2007

I can agree with that. It does suck here in central cali to some degree. My husband has been stationed in lemoore since 1991. I'm originally from baltimore and yes it was a big shock when I came to cali. I was like this is not the california I heard of but it has been my home for the past 10 years. and yes the house prices have gone up and now are going down. Entry level starts at $240,000 for a brand new home. I've seen this area grow from the NO.cal and SO. cal transplants and it has gotten better. yes the property taxes are outrageous in texas, that's what I can't get over. But even with that I am still getting more house for the money. Texas has it advantages. But I will always be a baltimore girl.

smk1, LPN · Sep 26, 2007

About what could on expect to pay in property taxes in a good neighborhood on a 150k house in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area?

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Sep 26, 2007

About what could on expect to pay in property taxes in a good neighborhood on a 150k house in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area?

Each city, town, and suburb has its own tax rate. On $150,000 house, you can expect to pay anywhere from $2,800 to $4,500 yearly, since some cities have cheaper tax rates than others. Typically, homes that are located in good school districts tend to have heftier property tax bills.

For example, Keller is a booming suburb located in the northeast Fort Worth area. When I was house-hunting 2 years ago, I was looking into buying a $120,000 house that was located in the Keller Independent School District. Since the Keller ISD has a stellar reputation, the property taxes on this $120,000 house were projected to be $3,850 yearly.

I settled on a house that was located in the Crowley ISD. I live in southwest Fort Worth near the Crowley city limits, and the school district around here has a good reputation. Last year's property taxes were $2,900. While I don't have kids, it is important to be located in a "good" school district, because that's a major selling point of a house.

smk1, LPN · Sep 26, 2007

OK, thanks. The taxes are a bit spendy, but I pay 3000/year on my house which I bought for 184k in WA. So this is not going to be a shock to me.

mymomisanurse · Sep 26, 2007

property taxes differ according to where you live. I do know that Keller was very expensive around 3% I think. I've been house hunting for about a year and have seen yearly property taxes as much as $9000/yr. We were considering cedar hill near joe pool lake but that area is also very expensive. The more expensive house you have the higher your property taxes are going to be. So take that into consideration also. You might want to look into areas that are not within the city limits. They tend to have a lower tax rate and no city water bills. We chose to live in Burleson and it has a great school district, is close to our family, many lakes and fort worth.

Sheri257 · Sep 27, 2007

California pays their nurses significantly more but, unless the nurse lives in a sorry Central Valley town amid the cow dung, the supposedly "good money" and "big paychecks" are typically eroded by the expensive cost of living in that state.

Good Grief! It's not that bad ... LOL.

As I recall, you sold your house in Bakersfield for a nice profit and paid cash for your Texas house ... which is great but ... let's not forget that California's increased cost of living was probably a tremendous benefit for you.

Yep, Texas is cheap but, that also means your house doesn't appreciate much either so it's a double edged sword.

As for us Cali nurses who are living amid cow dung ... I live in the desert and it doesn't smell bad out here.

I paid $150K for my house. It's not worth $300K anymore ... actually houses are getting down to the mid to low '200s now ... I suspect it's probably the same over in Bakersfield since both markets have tracked about the same.

When you run those cost of living calculators, the difference is about 20 percent compared with Texas cities like Dallas and Houston ... even with the higher housing prices.

BUT ... how much money am I making? $43 an hour. In three years it gets up to $48, with benefits.

How much would I have to make in Texas to maintain the same standard of living? About $70-80K and, obviously that's never gonna happen ... at least any time soon.

So ... I guess the cost of living factor depends on how you play it. Personally ... I'd rather lock in a cheap mortgage and go for higher wages and house appreciation. Because the current real estate market notwithstanding ... you probably benefit more financially in the long run.

Sheri257 · Sep 27, 2007

Actually, studies have proven that Texas ranks #1 in the nation for RN wages after cost-of-living adjustments have been made.

If you want to live on or near the coast that's true but, that's not where the boom market for nurses is in California anymore ... those studies only focused on San Francisco, LA, San Diego, etc.

The boom market is in the inland areas. And now that inland houses are getting significantly cheaper ... there's much better money to be made. Hospitals are expanding like crazy because the population is booming out there and you can make coastal wages without the higher cost of living.

As for those areas being "less desirable" ... I lived in Texas ... it's pretty much the same ... sprawling suburb either way.

So to me at least ... the difference pretty much boils down to how much money you can make and ... California definitely pays better.

loricatus · Sep 27, 2007

Good Grief! It's not that bad ... LOL.
As I recall, you sold your house in Bakersfield for a nice profit and paid cash for your Texas house ... which is great but ... let's not forget that California's increased cost of living was probably a tremendous benefit for you.
Yep, Texas is cheap but, that also means your house doesn't appreciate much either so it's a double edged sword.
As for us Cali nurses who are living amid cow dung ... I live in the desert and it doesn't smell bad out here.
I paid $150K for my house. It's not worth $300K anymore ... actually houses are getting down to the mid to low '200s now ... I suspect it's probably the same over in Bakersfield since both markets have tracked about the same.
When you run those cost of living calculators, the difference is about 20 percent compared with Texas cities like Dallas and Houston ... even with the higher housing prices.
BUT ... how much money am I making? $43 an hour. In three years it gets up to $48.
How much would I have to make in Texas to maintain the same standard of living? About $70-80K and, obviously that's never gonna happen ... at least any time soon.
So ... I guess the cost of living factor depends on how you play it. Personally ... I'd rather lock in a cheap mortgage and go for higher wages and house appreciation. Because the current real estate market notwithstanding ... you probably benefit more finanically in the long run.

I agree with you. I lived in Texas and knew it was time to leave after having to pay a $500.00 electric bill for a particularly hot month (100 degrees plus most of the month). Now, if the argument to this is going to be that the winters are less expensive, I beg to differ. My gas heat bill during November through March averaged $150.00 per month, while my electric was around $95.00. I paid no more than $200.00 for gas heat this past winter in LI and my electric bill averaged $40.00 per month. I rarely have to use the a/c and actually get to breath ocean air because I can leave my windows open most of the summer. I am still able to pay the mortgage on an empty house in Texas, while renting a house in Long Island with my increased wages here. BTW, Long Island is comparable in cost of living to much of CA. Although the cost of housing is lower in TX, the cost of all other living is pretty much comparable to here; and, the wages in Texas certainly do not refect that. Actual cost for utilities were higher because the climate mandates constant use of a/c from April to October (sorry, I can't stand the heat and need it at least 75 degrees to be able to function-I don't consider it leaving beyond my means to ask that I avoid sweating). Gas utilities, cable, & phone are more expensive than here. The gasoline prices are a bit less; but, I do not have to put on the mileage I did while I was in Texas, so the actual cost for it is a lot less. With the wages I received in Texas, I could not even afford a new car and still pay for all the necessities of a lower middle class life.

I truly believe that they cook the books there when it comes to cost of living calculations. For instance, what was advertised as the cost per kilowatt hour really wasn't. They do not add in the calculations all the fees that are on top of that kilowatt hour-anyone there, divide your payment amount by the amount of kilowatt hours used and you will see that you are paying a lot more than rate that is provided as their cost to consumers. Another thing, I now pay $25.00 every 3 months for my water bill-I used to pay $50.00 per month for it in Texas. So, when they say that the cost of living being less justifies the low wages, I cannot agree because the proportionate real cost of living versus the real wages puts nursing in the unskilled manual labor category.

smk1, LPN · Sep 27, 2007

The best deal I have seen from any nurse that I know is an RN with 1 year of CCU experience and is making 45/hour in NYC and rents a nice house on Staten Island for 1500/month (4 bed 2 bath nice yard and schools). No property tax, signed a long term lease and while she has no plans to ever buy a home, she chucks away almost 2 grand/month in savings without being married... and she gets all of the fun of NYC and the travel deals, food, culture etc...