Hello Everyone,

I am new to the forum, in fact, I'm making the move from Maryland to Austin in the next two weeks. I'm looking to make my next decade the best and would like your suggestions and recommendations about the job market, housing and any other words of wisdom this midlife might find useful. Thank you very much and have a great day!

pk66

Hello PK!

Welcome to WomenBloom and to Austin!

Austin is a very cool place to live, lots going on.

We'd be happy to help you out any way possible. If you have some specific questions about housing etc, please feel free to ask and we'll do our best to point you in the right direction.

As far as general advice, just know that Austin is a very friendly place and people are very open to new people. All that is to say, plugging into some professional groups relevant to your work should be easy and could be a great source for new friends as well. On a personal interest level, The Austin Chronicle (you can pick it up around town-it's free) is a good source of music, lectures, art, theater happenings. And Meetup.com is a good way to find groups in town with interests similar to yours--this is good for anyone out there anywhere actually.

Hope that's helpful. Please feel free to ask any specific questions and we'll get you pointed in the right direction!

Hope you'll visit WomenBloom often!
Allison

Thank you very much! I would like to know where I might find affordable housing in the Austin area. I am also looking for employment. I will welcome all suggestions. Thanks once again!

pk66

Welll...central Austin is very popular but pretty expensive. The surrounding areas of Round Rock, Pflugerville, Cedar Park to the north and Kyle and Buda to the south tend to be more affordable. You don't say if you're renting or not but I would check out those areas. If you're of an adventurous nature, the East Side of Austin is pretty hip, but it still has areas that are a little shaky. Further out east is growing rapidly because of the new state highway out there...Manor may be pretty affordable these days and not that far out.

Another thing to think about is that house sharing here is VERY common because the central areas can be expensive. Craig's List is a great place to check out for those. I'm doing that myself at the moment and it has been just great!

Hope those are a little helpful...

Allison

Hi Allison,

Thank you very much for your speedy reply. I will make certain to check out those areas. I am definitley looking for affordable. I will be supporting myself and my 3 year old golden retriever. I would like to rent for the first few months and will not be bringing anything with me except a few suitcases. I need to find work ASAP and will go from there. I am an administrative asistant/office manager with about 20 years experience. Any suggestions? I have been canvassing Monster, Career Builder and Craigs List. I am hopeful to find something relatively quickly. I would also like to inquire as to weather in specific - the humidity. I am moving out west to get away from the oppresive humidity of the east coast for my arthritis. When I say humidity it's usually 90 degrees with 90 percent humidity! Thanks again everyone, I really do appreciate your candor and friendliness. What a great website! I think that I will like living in Austin!

Kathy

Hello PK66,

Ah well, the humidity is probably going to be more than you might think. Probably not in the 90%s mostly but occasionally it will get up there. But, then we do have plenty of times when it's reasonable, we're certainly getting lovely weather at the moment. And you will love it when it's about Jan. 17 and it's 72 and sunny outside!

RE: jobs. Check out the website of a company called Administaff (www.administaff.com). They are a Human Resources outsourcing company for small and mid-size businesses. They help their clients recruit for employees and they are a huge company. So, their website lists positions their clients have available and I should think that an experienced office manager would be in demand.

Also, I know that Right Management in Austin has a networking group for people who are in career transition. I think they meet every other week, could be a good way to plug in. If you look them up on the web, I think you could find out more information.

Hope this helps!
Allison