Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Texas > Houston
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 07-24-2011, 04:58 PM
 
Location: Houston, TX
29 posts, read 36,854 times
Reputation: 12

Advertisements

I'm an EE (single person) with many years of experience in semiconductors and also at system level in the Silicon Valley. I've moved to Houston a few months ago, paid off a nice house and fortunately HP offered me a job with $84K yearly salary and 10% bonus, at the same time a very profitable test equipment maker in the Silicon Valley gave me 31% higher with same bonus plan but paid out every six months, $3K for relocation assistance and possibly reimbursed car shipping cost. At this point I don't know which job offer is better. I know take home income for both is about the same (10% California state tax) without the extra income from renting out the house, and if I rent a decent apartment in the Bay area (less personal comfort than own bigger house). Some said to stay in Houston due to already settled (no labor and time to repack), family, close commute to HP with more than one traffic route, much better personal living ( big house paid off with only property tax, insurance and low hoa). Others said to move back to Cali due to best weather, more fun for single people, friends to hang out with, more jobs in case.

Which job would be best for me for many years ahead?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 07-24-2011, 05:19 PM
 
Location: Houston, TX
1,611 posts, read 4,875,183 times
Reputation: 1487
To me this is a no-brainer, I would stay in Texas. Your money will go a heckuva lot further here than in California. Taxes alone will eat up so much more of your income and you must already know the cost of housing here in Houston is much lower. But it is more about the long-term, California is in dire financial straits and getting worse by the week. Taxes are rising, services are diminishing and companies are leaving the state in droves because the business climate in so un-friendly. Take your vacations to California if you really like the state but keep your residence and your income here in Texas where there is no state income tax. Your decision but that's my two cents...
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 07-24-2011, 06:08 PM
 
Location: The Greater Houston Metro Area
9,053 posts, read 17,304,219 times
Reputation: 15226
My son did the analysis when offered a job in Dallas vs. one paying 10% higher in CA. Money went a loooooot further in Texas. Even with 10% more - it was no contest.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 07-24-2011, 09:02 PM
 
Location: Austin, TX
4,760 posts, read 13,896,230 times
Reputation: 3280
According to the Bankrate calculator online, an $84,000 salary in Houston is equivalent to $149,000 in the Bay Area of California.

Also, $3K for relocation? That's not nearly enough.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 07-24-2011, 09:15 PM
 
958 posts, read 2,590,121 times
Reputation: 827
Why don't you use your offer from Cali as a bargaining chip for even higher pay at HP.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 07-24-2011, 09:24 PM
 
Location: Where nothing ever grows. No rain or rivers flow, Texas
1,085 posts, read 1,592,169 times
Reputation: 468
come back to houston when youre almost 40 and have found a good lady.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 07-24-2011, 09:26 PM
 
Location: earth?
7,284 posts, read 13,009,138 times
Reputation: 8956
What do you WANT to do? Do that.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 07-24-2011, 09:27 PM
 
Location: Houston, TX
17,029 posts, read 31,112,662 times
Reputation: 16266
Go for it, see what your lifestyle is is Cali with the 31% bump...
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 07-24-2011, 10:59 PM
 
1,290 posts, read 5,462,657 times
Reputation: 724
Personally, I'd stay with the lesser salary. Due to the cost of living difference you are probably actually making more in Houston.

HP isn't the same company it used to be to work for, but it still looks awesome on a resume, so if you want to move eventually, you'll have HP on there. I would imagine the company in CA isn't the resume builder that HP is.

Question: Have you countered the HP offer? I would bet you could get a little more out of them. $84K is decent, but they pay very well for incoming talent (the yearly adjustments are slim). If they really want you, they'll come up I'd imagine.

If you have not countered their offer, the best way to see if the offer is negotiable is to actually ask. "I appreciate the generous offer, but I was wondering if this offer is negotiable." If it is, they'll ask what you have in mind, if it isn't they'll tell you, or suggest some other method to sweeten the pot (signing bonus, extra vacation, etc).
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 07-25-2011, 09:22 PM
 
Location: Houston, TX
29 posts, read 36,854 times
Reputation: 12
Quote:
Originally Posted by Topaz View Post
According to the Bankrate calculator online, an $84,000 salary in Houston is equivalent to $149,000 in the Bay Area of California.

Also, $3K for relocation? That's not nearly enough.
I know so they bumped up $1k for relo, still $1k lower than I expected. The company has free lunch and free benefits (zero deductibles from paycheck), very profitable with 10% of salary for bonus plan every six months. I can share a studio with living room, kitchen, own bath for $750 month in decent neighborhood. Is this good enough to move?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2022 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Texas > Houston
Similar Threads
View detailed profiles of:

All times are GMT -6. The time now is 06:49 AM.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top