New and need your help!

[thoughtsofone]

SoWal members,

My wife Aubrey and I are seriously considering relocating to the SoWal area (especially 30-A). We both have vacationed in SoWal since we were little and we just had our destination wedding in Seaside in June. We need your help and expertise! We need some answers to questions that we are having a hard time finding out the answers to.

What is the job market like in SoWal? We currently live in Nashville, Tennessee and the job market is not great. We both have Bachelor degrees, mine is in Business Administration with an emphasis in Music and Entertainment and her's is in Physical Education. She is a licensed teacher and currently works in a pre-school. I currently own my own web design company (you may have seen me posting about it recently!) but I also work retail for additional income.

She would obviously be looking for a teaching job, including pre-school. She could also be a personal trainer as soon as she gets her license. I would be looking for a business administration related profession in retail or other places. The traditional job search sites show little in South Walton.

The other issue would be housing. We currently rent a 700 square foot one bedroom apartment and pay $825 plus utilities. We would be looking to rent and would need to stay in a similar price range. We certainly would want to be on 30-A if at all possible.

We would appreciate your help with any of the above questions. We see so many people moving to the area on this forum and it really is a dream of ours to join the community!

Thanks for your help!

Sincerely,

Chris

 

[SHELLY]

SoWal members,

My wife Aubrey and I are seriously considering relocating to the SoWal area (especially 30-A). We both have vacationed in SoWal since we were little and we just had our destination wedding in Seaside in June. We need your help and expertise! We need some answers to questions that we are having a hard time finding out the answers to.

What is the job market like in SoWal? We currently live in Nashville, Tennessee and the job market is not great. We both have Bachelor degrees, mine is in Business Administration with an emphasis in Music and Entertainment and her's is in Physical Education. She is a licensed teacher and currently works in a pre-school. I currently own my own web design company (you may have seen me posting about it recently!) but I also work retail for additional income.

She would obviously be looking for a teaching job, including pre-school. She could also be a personal trainer as soon as she gets her license. I would be looking for a business administration related profession in retail or other places. The traditional job search sites show little in South Walton.

The other issue would be housing. We currently rent a 700 square foot one bedroom apartment and pay $825 plus utilities. We would be looking to rent and would need to stay in a similar price range. We certainly would want to be on 30-A if at all possible.

We would appreciate your help with any of the above questions. We see so many people moving to the area on this forum and it really is a dream of ours to join the community!

Thanks for your help!

Sincerely,

Chris

Do you have about a year's worth of total living expenses (@ $1000-1200 rent) in liquid assets?

.

 

[scooterbug44]

I would recommend that you be cautious and both find jobs and a place to live before committing the time and $ to the move.

Lots of Sowallers are already in the unemployment line and looking for jobs and more are joining them as the country's economic woes continue to increase.

 

[Redd]

Suggest you check the papers such as www.waltonsun.com employment sections and employment on this board
if at all possible line up the job first even if you have to travel to interview

then search for available rentals. On 30a expect to pay anywhere form 900 to 1250 ro even 1500 for a small place. That depends on your expectations and compromise on how close to the beach etc
Google map the addresses so you can check the locations

Then follow the wise advise of shelly and have reserves for at least 6 months or a year if having to cover a shortfall.

Rentals start to fill up for summer so early in the year is better to get a deal on a rental - do haggle as some need renters to cover their nut


After the blah blah election things will improve regardless of who is elected - thats typical after election cycles

 

[thoughtsofone]

Thanks for all the help so far. We are being very realistic and cautious about our potential journey to the area. We are in the process of building up savings and searching for jobs. Are there any other schools in South Walton besides the public schools and the Montessori school? Are there any other avenues for job searching besides the local papers and craigslist? Unfortunately, Monster and Career Builder are only showing some shady work from home positions.

Thanks again!

Chris

 

[Jdarg]

Thanks for all the help so far. We are being very realistic and cautious about our potential journey to the area. We are in the process of building up savings and searching for jobs. Are there any other schools in South Walton besides the public schools and the Montessori school? Are there any other avenues for job searching besides the local papers and craigslist? Unfortunately, Monster and Career Builder are only showing some shady work from home positions.

Thanks again!

Chris

There are 2 elementary schools, 2 middles schools, and 1 high school south of the bay- all public. The Montessori school is the only private school. Not to discourage you, but I heard 2 principals remark on the large number of applications from very qualified teachers they had received this year, and the positions filled very quickly. I know several teachers that teach North County that are dying to get teaching jobs in SoWal. There are also several preschools- St. Rita's, Good News Methodist, Community Church. You might want to check with Okaloosa and Bay counties.

 

[waltonco lover]