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Had enough... Leaving NY

TimNY

TimNY

REGISTERED
Joined
Jan 13, 2010
Messages
1,133
Location
Charleston, SC
Just have to vent.

Skyrocketing property taxes (and it looks like Patterson is going to make them even higher), a tax on bottled water (taxed for being healthy), paying MTA taxes on my self-employment side work (receive .5% of the benefit of public transportation but pay the same as NYC).. and finally a snowstorm (took 3 days to have my improved public road plowed) pushed me over the edge.

Something is wrong when you have a great municipal job and every month you're no farther ahead.

So, house is on the market. Fortunately I have a lot of equity in my home and will walk away with enough to buy something in the real world and have plenty left over.

Currently looking at the Charleston SC area.. Not sure what I am going to do, but thankfully I'll be in a position to take the time to figure it out.

Would like to work as an inspector, either municipal or private, under somebody with the experience to teach me something. At my current job I got my certification from the State, was given a desk and some car keys and told to go to work. Add to the situation that there really are no great building inspectors (nice people, lots of "life" experience.. but not code gurus [one prefers to see wyes where the fixture arm connects to the vertical stack??]) in the surrounding area and I had nobody to bounce anything off of. All day, every day, I call contractors out on wrong gauge strapping, improper shear panel nailing, no pan under an air handler, drains tied together with no float switch, no safety glazing where required, improper insulation R value.. contractors look at me like I have two heads. I see sanitary tees on their back for drainage and used for horizontal changes in direction on every job. What do you mean, "handrails must be returned"? I've had to "discuss" with a senior fire marshal the regulations regarding key-operated from the egress side locks on doors in other than M occupancies.. Accessibility, what's that? It's out of control and as a solo operation I don't think I can change the world out here. On top of everything else the job is just getting depressing.

So, if anybody in the Charleston area needs a hand, let me know.. I am definitely out of here before the Sept. school year starts..
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

Good for you!

If you ever consider Texas, let me know.

Good luck in your new endeavors.
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

Tim - Sorry to hear that. I understand your frustration, but keep in mind that the grass is not necessarily greener in other states. As you've seen here (and on the old board), contractors, code officials and DPs everywhere are the same mixed bag of good, bad and ugly. Sometimes the demons we know are a lesser evil than the demons we don't.
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

Maybe I should be moving too. :cry:

I was trying to wait until after I retire though. That is decades away though.
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

Thanks for the kinds words.

I've lived here all my life, and so have my parents, their parents and so on. Fortunately we live in a housing "bubble" in that our home prices are not declining at the same rate (not even close) as the rest of the country. Also fortunate for me is the values of homes skyrocketed from when I bought.

It's a unique time in US history. I think now is a great time to invest in some of these depressed areas. I have time to wait, and maybe one day the market will recover, and I will have made a good investment. I have been looking at some short sale homes, so if you find an auction flyer for SC, let me know!

Honestly, my home is not my home anymore. All the open space is gone, the cost of living is unbearable, the quality of the schools is not commensurate with the school taxes I pay. Daycare costs me $75/day for the baby.

I look at my kids growing up and I haven't saved anything for their college education... and I don't even have cable tv or high speed internet at home, so I'm not living la vida loca.

I think there's some excitement in making a change, and the worst I can do is try and fail.

If anybody is familiar with the area, please let me know!
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

Hope you like nascar, sweet tea and coleslaw on your BBQ sandwiches. :P

I admire what you want to do and wish you the best. I moved from South Fl to Mt for some of the very same reasons you and FM mentioned. It took 5 years to get into the inspections again due to very few openings. Going from a heavily regulated state, (codes and liscensing(FL) to one which is not (Mt) can take a lot to get used to. Get your NY certs accepted by ICC they will hold more clout.
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

mtlog - You do realize that well over 40 states accepted NYS Cert as 'golden' prior to ICCs existence, don't you?
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

Tim,

Sorry to hear about your situation. As Pack stated; Texas has lots of land and continuous growth. Check out MMMarvel's job postings. Cost of living is low; no State income tax; great homestead law. Texas even has village for ultra liberals; Austin. :)

Best Wishes,

Uncle Bob
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

Tim do you have ICC Cert's? Send me or Peach a PM we will be looking for an inspector soon. ICC certifications (Residential Combination) minimum are going to be a must plus a minimum of three years field inspection experience.
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

dcspector said:
Tim do you have ICC Cert's? Send me or Peach a PM we will be looking for an inspector soon. ICC certifications (Residential Combination) minimum are going to be a must plus a minimum of three years field inspection experience.
Click to expand...
I don't have any ICC cert's at this point. In the land of oz we have a one-cert-does-all system.

I plan on taking some at the conferences coming up. I see there's Building, Electrical, Mechanical and Plumbing. Are all of them required? Figured I start with building and plumbing.

Field experience not a problem. Can't move until June-ish (daughter in school) or until the house sells.. whatever is later. Thanks for keeping me in mind. Time to dust off the resume`!
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

mtlog - You do realize that well over 40 states accepted NYS Cert as 'golden' prior to ICCs existence, don't you?
Click to expand...
I have only worked in 2 and the NY certs alone would not have gotten you an interview in either one. You had to be certified in the codes adopted by the state, SBCCI or UBC
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

TimNY,

Sorry to hear of your situation. Yours is the same as others across this nation. Some better, some worse!

You might send a PM to ' pyrguy '. They were / are looking for a combo type inspector. Not sure of the

certs required though! Pyrguy and Mike Myers business is in Columbia, SC.

FWIW, I lived in Charleston, SC about a hundred yrs,. ago. :lol: It was a nice city. Lots of plusses...

They DO get hurricanes, but no artic, fridgid type weather [ typically ]. I guess you gotta pick your poison.

:D

.
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

Run Tim Run!!! :lol:

Tim, I know what you are feeling. I picked-up and left the east coast about 5 years ago. Best move / decision I ever made.
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

Tim,

ICC certs are pretty well accepted in most States. In Oklahoma, I submitted my ICC certs to the State Board and they issued me an Unlimited Inspector's License. Also, most AHJs want you to have ICC certs in order to qualify for the postions they are offering. When I was working; I got at least one ICC certification per year.

Now, is a good time to start getting those certifications.

Uncle Bob
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

globe: Thanks. No need to feel sorry, I consider myself lucky to be able to make such a move. Unlike many, I can make ends meet and my LTV is about 30%. I just want to free myself of some aggravation, move to a warmer climate and hopefully build something that I can pass onto my kids someday. Schools here are 'ok', of course I pay about $2400/yr in school taxes. There's no magnet schools here. My wife is a pediatric nurse, but in a past lifetime she was a singer, performer (even had a Broadway callback for Les Miserables, but had to decline because she was in nursing school). That 30M arts magnet school is a big plus for us. This is strictly a 'because we want to', not 'because we have to' :)

jpranch: That's what I'm talking about!!

Uncle Bob: Thanks for the info. I've already looked into sitting for some certs at an ESBOF conference this spring.

Also thank you for the PM's that have been sent. I got some real good info on certifications and reciprocity.
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

Tim,

Wanted to throw my two cents in and agree with Uncle Bob. Check out the employment section of the Texas Municipal League website.

I moved from the Illinois to Texas in the last year. Took a little time to find the position I wanted, but its a great place to be. Cost of living is lower, in South Texas I haven't seen a season yet that in anyway shape or form is what I know as winter. No income tax, and in a lot of areas the economy has not been effected like the rest of the nation. Plus for me the culture is a good fit. Lot's of yes sir, yes ma'am and they mean it. And with three of the largest cities in the nation here you have a good source of whatever big city culture you might want to sample.

Get the certs and keep getting them. The more you certs you have the more jobs you are going to qualify for. Certs aren't the only thing that counts, but you don't get invited to too many interviews without them.
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

Although we need good Code people here in NY, I wish you good luck and success! Your frustrations related to state government are shared by... well - everybody! I have only 2,555 days until retirement and then I'll be following you.

You will have to look out for snakes and ticks and chiggers in warmer climates. And those critters that eat buildings oh yeah, termites. Don't plan on swimming in any old creek in the south - you never can tell what's in there with ya. I was swimmin in a gravel pit in TN once, and ahh never mind.(one thing NY does have is an abundance of clean fresh water)

Keep an eye open for heavy weather too - residents of tornado alley & anyplace coastal know what I mean. A snowstorm is mellow - even pretty - compared to some storms.

I'm sure the other 49 state governments have a better grip on reality and are much more fiscally sound than NY. You'll probably find lower taxes, more efficient services, better schools, affordable college tuitions, happy well-adjusted populations, less crime and better teeth.

But south Texas - if there is anyplace else more inviting, please let me know where it is. I gotta start making plans..
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

Thanks Mac.

Being an island guy I'm dealing with all that anyway (except tornadoes).

I'm in 120mh zone now. How nice it would be to be in an area that falls under the prescriptive code... Alas, I think I will end up in 110 or 120 again. At least I'm familiar.
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

Mac,

If you ever head toward South Texas, be happy to show you what I know and split a bottle of good whiskey to swamp lies over.

After I got here wondered why it took me so long to make the decision and do it.
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

texas, what part of south Texas are you in? I took my carpentry apprenticeship in Corpus Christi back in the early 80's. Spent a lot of time at Padre Island. Lot's of good people in Texas.

GPE
 
Re: Had enough... Leaving NY

I lived in Charleston from 1991 until 2001 but I was not yet in this field. I can tell you that there are several good hospitals for your wife to check out (my wife is also a nurse) and the heat in the summer is stifling. You may have a hard time getting respect from the locals because of where you are from (north).

I was called a yankee when I lived there because I was from Virginia. :lol:

I can help you with where to look at houses and which nurse jobs are good and other local questions. You can P.M. me if you wish. Good luck and I hope you like seafood and bourbon and of course gin and tonics and ghost stories.
 
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