[robonner]

New to The Villages from Pennsylvania. 35 Years experience in Revenue Cycle Management, all facets from Admissions to back end office Billing and Collections. I have my Bachelor's in Accounting and am dual certified through AAHAM. Having difficult time finding comparable employment. Any ideas or suggestions?

[Bizdoc]

If you have not looked at the Orlando area, I would do so. The opportunities in the immediate area are pretty limited and the pay scales depressed due, in part, to the number of retirees (and spouses of retirees) who want to be here and want to have some income for whatever reason.

Be aware that pay scales in general in FL are lower than you are probably used to. The flip side is that you won't have to pay state income tax.

I would look to your professional association(s) to network and find some folks working in your specialty. They will usually know about openings before they get advertised. LinkedIn can also be helpful to find similar folks.

Good luck.

[NottaVillager]

The fact that FL has no state or local income taxes very much do not make up the slack for the abominable wages paid down here. Whatever you made up north plan to make 30-50% LESS down here for the exact same job.

[PR1234]

The Villages was listed as #2 in this article, very misleading from what I have heard?
5 cities where wages are soaring- MSN Money

[NottaVillager]

Originally Posted by PR1234

The Villages was listed as #2 in this article, very misleading from what I have heard?
5 cities where wages are soaring- MSN Money

Well yeah. If you were making $1 and you now made $2 statistically you had a huge jump. If you aren't being paid much it doesn't take too much of a raise to give you significant bump statistically. I'm guessing that a lot of highest money is probably going to the construction trades in and around TV and I am guessing they don't make anything compared to union tradesmen in the north. The local hospital pays terribly at all levels compared to the north and on and on and on.

[robonner]

Thanks for your suggestions, and I have explored all of the sources that you mention. As for the wages and state/local tax, what jobs I do see are MUCH lower than the combined 4.2% of state/local tax rate that I was paying in PA. I am beginning to think that if one is not ready or willing to fully retire, The Villages (and maybe Florida in general) is just not the place to live. I wish I would have realized this before I moved.

[RErmer]

Professional associations and LinkedIn are great suggestions for networking. I'm recently retired after spending 30+ years in Global HR/Compensation. Some points to consider:

1. Companies do not set pay rates based on cost of living; pay rates are set based on cost of labor, which is different. If a company has to recruit nationally to fill a position(skilled professionals), the company will more likely pay national rates. If a company can fill a position locally (like admins) then local (usually lower) rates will be paid in FL. Also, when there is a rich local recruiting pool (translation, many retirees with great skills willing to work for less or just part time) the cost of labor in an area will be depressed.
2. If you really want to get into the pay differences, go to Welcome to Salary.com! - Salary.com and search for your desired job title and location. You can also compare pay for the same job in various locations. Several companies I worked for used this tool. It is run by a very reputable company and generally has pretty good.

Good luck in your search.

[Bizdoc]

If your goal is to have an interesting job, do keep in mind that the theme parks (most notably Disney and Universal) are in a constant recruiting mode. You would most likely find something in treasury ops, but a job is a job. And remember, their treasury ops is dealing with billions of dollars in receipts annually, so it is a very big deal.

[mulligan]

Welcome to the anti-union right to work capitol of the country. Lack of collective bargaining is reflected in the ridiculous wages and lack of benefits. United we bargain, divided we beg.

[Bogie Shooter]

Originally Posted by robonner

Thanks for your suggestions, and I have explored all of the sources that you mention. As for the wages and state/local tax, what jobs I do see are MUCH lower than the combined 4.2% of state/local tax rate that I was paying in PA. I am beginning to think that if one is not ready or willing to fully retire, The Villages (and maybe Florida in general) is just not the place to live. I wish I would have realized this before I moved.

oops!

[dbussone]

Give it awhile. Just like anywhere else, it takes time to find something that really interests you. Healthcare in FL is a very vibrant industry and your skills are needed.

Forget the rust belt vs sun belt crap.

[NottaVillager]

Originally Posted by dbussone

Give it awhile. Just like anywhere else, it takes time to find something that really interests you. Healthcare in FL is a very vibrant industry and your skills are needed.

Forget the rust belt vs sun belt crap.

It's NOT crap. Yes. healthcare is very vibrant down here. It just pays about HALF of what it pays up north. How jolly!

[dbussone]

Originally Posted by NottaVillager

It's NOT crap. Yes. healthcare is very vibrant down here. It just pays about HALF of what it pays up north. How jolly!

Not sure what you do, but at the management level (which I believe the OP is) you are way off base.

[NottaVillager]

Originally Posted by dbussone

Not sure what you do, but at the management level (which I believe the OP is) you are way off base.

Wrong-O! My wife is a nurse-practitioner and she took a 46% pay cut coming down here. As our Villages Insurance rep told us.."Any job you can think of pays MUCH less in Florida than it does up north. And she's RIGHT.

[asianthree]

Unless you can work remotely the pay is iffy