Me and the SO are planning to visit Madison, WI to scout it out for the possibility of moving there next year in June-July. We're trying to find out what it's like out there, what's to like, what's not to like, and so on. Our biggest concern is about the Winter months, and of course, finding a job that allows us to continue advancing our careers and savings.
We've about had it with anything and everything California. Buying a decent home out here in Orange County, or really, anywhere out here, is not going to make much financial sense unless we move to an area we really don't like such as some of the LA areas. The traffic and everything else just has led us to being far to disgruntled to be happy with where we're at. It makes saving difficult, and makes me unhappy when I see how much goes to rent each month.
The SO is an absolute cold/stormy weather freak and I've spent most of my vacations seeing family out in Oconomowoc and Milwaukee so I have an idea of just how cold it will get. I've never had the chance to stay more than two weeks at a time though, so it will definitely be an adjustment going through a full winter.
I don't have any work lined up in Madison yet, since the potential move date is over a year away; I"m currently a Sr. System Admin at a medium-sized firm, and do IT consulting on the side to several other large companies. I've seen countless articles that Madison is a pretty good up-and-coming spot for someone in tech, but I don't know what the reality is actually like. I'd like to play it safe and check it out when I'm visiting in November to see just what Madison holds in my line of work. I'm also planning on spending the next few months testing the waters to see what's available out there, but the tricky part is figuring out what competition and avg. salary is for my market.
It'd be great, if not ideal, to continue running my own business out there, but for the sake of stability, I'll most likely have to get a regular 9-5. I don't think it would be realistic to expect to find businesses willing to hire a consultant like me for anywhere near the same rates I get out here in Newport Beach. Any thoughts on the tech sector out there?
The SO is in the legal field as a paralegal in litigation/patent areas but she should be able to reapply her skills to a different sector of law if the need is there.
Also, no kids. No plans for at least a few years since we're more in exploration/career mode and won't consider kids until we really find where we want to stay locked down in the world. Maybe it's Madison? ;)
Any Mustachians have thoughts on Madison, WI as a place to live and work? Issues some of you encountered after moving there? Any long time residents have guidance or input on where to live and work out there? If it becomes a long term residence for us, any opinions on the outlook for rental properties in the area? Thank you for your time and guidance.