DH has been told to transfer or he loses his job :/

[Mandylubug]

Just when we feel we have a plan. Kids homeschooling is going well, etc. We have to let them know if he wants to transfer by May 6th. If he doesn't transfer, his job ends in November.

 

Thing is he works for an airline. We like the flying priviledges, the pay is decent especially in the next few years, insurance is good and they match dollar for dollar in 401k. He hates to walk away and have to start over with another company. And poor DH has been laid off from every.single.job. since we have been married for 10 years. I feel horrible for him.

 

We own our home here. Not sure if we can sell it. We may need to rent it out like we did when he was in the military.

 

Anyway, any recommendations for airline employee, homeschool friendly areas?

[Jennifer3141]

Where do they want to transfer your DH to???

[Um_2_4]

Has he been told where to? With this economy and those sort of benefits, I would seriously consider transferring. Get an agent out to your house to evaluate if you can sell/rent and go from there.

[Mandylubug]

It is more of a "you tell us what airport you want to transfer to and we will let you know if you can" sort of thing. Just not here in our home state.

[Ann.without.an.e]

Where are you now? What are looking for in a "state"? Climate?

 

NC is very homeschool friendly :)

[Mandylubug]

Ok he just messaged me airport codes to choose from. Now, to decipher the cities. Lol

[Dahliarw]

Do you have a list of options of where to go?

 

Don't know where you live now, but here in the Seattle area, as long as you're not a short sale, the market is a very strong sellers market. People are selling their houses in a matter of days! You may want to look into how the market is in your area.

[Annie G]

If O'Hare or Midway are on the list:

Illinois is a relaxed state for homeschoolers. No registration, no required testing. I have several friends whose husbands are pilots at the two above airports and they live in the Rockford area. MUCH cheaper than the Chicago suburbs, and there are lots of homeschoolers here.

[briansmama]

The beauty of homeschooling is that you can continue doing it no matter where you are! I'd look at the list and decide which area appeals to you all the most, and which has the best homeschooling community.

[Beth S]

nvm!

[Mandylubug]

Ok, here is the LONG list of cities available to us. Some of these I know I wouldn't be interested such as New York, NY, etc.. We want low cost of living, preferable not covered in snow all winter long or have the potential for tornadoes constantly. GA has enough tornadoes for my liking. We have lived in AZ and loved it. We like mountains and dryer air but our family is on the east coast. We are currently in Atlanta, GA. Another criteria we would like to have is the commute being within 30 minutes of the airport. We don't require a downtown location in any of these. DH did say there is a possibility that if some older employees are willing to take a severance package and leave we may be safe. We need 8 people that are "safe" to leave for him to remain. He's optimistic.. I will still plan in my head that we need to choose a city by May 6th. We have to have our transfer requests turned in by then and they will notify them in June if accepted.

 

available cities:

 

Albany, NY

Austin, TX

Windsor Locks, CT

Nashville, TN

Boston, MA

Buffalo, NY

Baltimore, MD

Columbus, OH

Dallas, TX

Vandalia, OH

D.C.

Denver, CO

Detroit, MI

Newark, NJ

Spokane, WA

Houston, TX

Indianapolis, IN

New York, NY

Kansas City, MO

Chicago, IL

Manchester, NH

Milwaukee, WI

Minneapolis

Oklahoma City, OK

Fort Myers, FL

San Francisco, CA

St. Louis, MD

[Scarlett]

There are some great cities on that list. What are your top three picks?

[Lara in Colo]

Austin--- Not too hot in the Hill Country, lower cost of living than here in Colorado, no snow, I don't remember any tornadoes......

[NotSoObvious]

Based on what you want, I'd pick Austin! Nashville would be a second.

[Mandylubug]

Spokane Washington, Fort Myers, FL, Denver Colorado...... but we are open to whatever. Where ever we do move, we want it to be an adventure and look different than GA. Call us crazy but we don't want it to be the same as home. We adored exploring AZ so we would want another good exploring state.

[fairfarmhand]

I live near Nashville. There's plenty of affordable real estate on the North side of town within 30 minutes of town. Weather's not too different from what you're used to. (not quite as hot, we get 1-2 snows in the average winter, but overall its not too bad in winter) No state income tax. Homeschooling laws are fairly easy to work with. The recession has not hit the area too terribly, but you can still get awesome real estate deals too! I have a good friend who's a realtor I can PM you her info if you decide on this area.

 

So personally, :D :D :D I'd choose Nashville!

[Audrey]

I would pick OKC, then Spokane.

 

 

Disclaimer: I loved OK, so I'm quite biased there. I think Okies are the friendliest people you'll find anywhere.

[Ameena]

I'd go Austin, and consider living in San Antonio and commuting to Austin {about a 45 minute drive & lots of people do it}. If you buy on the NE side of San Antonio you can get wonderful homes very cheaply, and there are LOTS of homeschoolers here too. Plus San Antonio is such a family city - there are lots of things to do here with kids. Great public transit here too.

 

And no snow :) We do get the occasional tiny tornado, but not often and they are normally on the south west side of town.

[MrsMommy]

St. Louis. The cost of living is quite low, and you could easily live on the Illinois side, still have a decent commute, and have little to worry about with homeschooling. The winters are fairly mild, and the tornado threat isn't terrible. Plus, Cardinals baseball! :)

[mumto2]

I lived near Ft. Myers when young. I loved it and have always missed it. We left when I was 10. I have been back a few times. I think there are some good housing possibilities within a half hour of the airport(Cape Coral would fit that I think--not where we lived) and FL is home ed friendly.

[Ameena]

Spokane Washington, Fort Myers, FL, Denver Colorado...... but we are open to whatever. Where ever we do move, we want it to be an adventure and look different than GA. Call us crazy but we don't want it to be the same as home. We adored exploring AZ so we would want another good exploring state.

 

 

If you like exploring, go for Austin, TX. You are centrally located in the state, and can go just about anywhere for a daytrip! Texas is like so many different places all rolled into one big state that it will keep you busy exploring for YEARS.

[Hockey Mom]

I just moved from the Fort Myers area. I lived there for over two decades. :) We're in Central Florida now, but we have a business and family still in the Fort Myers/Cape Coral area.

 

Pros:

• Beaches (if you like beaches), specifically Sanibel and Captiva.
  
• Relaxed homeschool laws. The one thing I will truly miss from Ft. Myers is our evaluator. She was/is fantastic.
  
• There is one really big homeschool group (CHESF). We were members for a year. I suppose it's one of those, "the more you put in, the more you get out of it" types of groups. I just didn't have time to volunteer or head-up any of the committees, so we never renewed with them.
  
• Fort Myers/Naples has: ice skating rink, Children's Science Center (Imaginarium) - be sure to sign up for the Homeschool classes! Miss Sara is great with the kids! Naples Zoo, Naples' Science Museum, Ding-Darling Nature's Preserve (Sanibel), Edison/Ford Winter Estates & Museum
  
• No snow!
  

 

Cons:

• If you are used to a lot of diversity, you will not get that in Southwest Florida.
  
• It's "small" in terms of size (this is my opinion - I prefer going to Tampa or Miami for fun stuff)
  
• The heat can get stifling if you're not used to it.
  
• It's Florida...a sub-tropical environment. While beautiful, it also contains bugs, reptiles, and critters that you should educate yourself and your children about.
  

 

This could be a pro or con: The area is generally a very red, conservative pocket of Florida (Charlotte, Lee, and Collier counties).

 

I hope that helps with regards to the Fort Myers area! :)

[Parrothead]

Using your criteria I'd pick Nashville.

[Hockey Mom]

I lived near Ft. Myers when young. I loved it and have always missed it. We left when I was 10. I have been back a few times. I think there are some good housing possibilities within a half hour of the airport(Cape Coral would fit that I think--not where we lived) and FL is home ed friendly.

 

 

Cape Coral was devastated by the housing crisis. If you're looking to buy a home, I'm sure you could find some really good deals. Cape Coral has two bridges that lead into Fort Myers, and both bridges can get you to the airport within about half an hour.

 

One other "pro" of living in Southwest Florida is the Gulf of Mexico. There's just nothing like seeing manatees and wild dolphins up close and in their natural habitat. If you and/or your Dh like to fish, I can point you to some really good fishing holes where you'll catch reds, snook, and spotted trout all day long. ;)

[Happy]

I'm near Dallas. My husband is in the airline biz, so we know it's an airline friendly area. LOTS of great housing choices (check my siggie. I can help you find one!) and lots and lots of homeschool options--classes, sports teams. More than anything this is a very friendly area. You may come here not knowing anyone but me, but you won't leave that way--unless you choose not to make friends. :lol:

 

We have hot summers, but we have lakes, pools, and Sonic happy hours to cope with them. Our winters are great. A day or two of snow, some cold weeks, a rare ice storm. We do get some big boomer thunderstorms in the spring.

 

When we had one of those move or lose moments, we chose the Fort Worth area....and love it! Come on over!!!!!

[Tita Gidge]

I think his line of work matters in at least arriving at a top five list.

 

My sister and brother are both airline employees, and I hold elite status on their airline because I make frequent trips for work.

 

Some of the other "regulars" on my route are employee commuters. Not just the expected flight crew, but also mechanics, rampers, and passenger service.

 

All were forced to new airports, and some were then forced from F/T to P/T because their senority at the new airport couldn't hold F/T shifts.

 

And everyone in the airline business knows that everything boils down to seniority, right?

 

So my first thing would be to make a top 10 list of where his seniority would be best, taking into account COL adjustments from where you currently live.

 

Once I had that top 10 list, I'd focus on homeschooling, weather and the other gravy in narrowing it down to five.

 

Then I'd personally visit each of the five airports (him alone, or as a family) to see if any city has that instant vibe.

 

If seniority isn't an issue for his position or at his airline, ... I'd go for wherever COL was same or less than my current home.

 

In another thread you mentioned Dallas Love field. When my sister was based at D/FW, we found the homeschooling to be easy and somewhat "normal" in terms of social acceptance. The COL was much lower than where we're originally from and housing was affordable. The weather left something to be desired, but we're from the tropics. Not a ton of snow, if ever, but summers were sometimes brutally humid. That's why there's A/C though :)

[Um_2_4]

I think with your criteria there are several you can remove: SF, CA and DC are both high COL along with NYC. I"m a KC,MO girl myself and it is very low COL from what I recall and has pretty much everything you could want (nature, museums downton), but I am not familiar with HSing there, so maybe someone else could let you know about that. You could check out Liberty, MO. That should be pretty close to the airport as I recall.

 

ETA: Oh, just saw the part about tornados, I never saw one, but we had warnings every year. It really mattered what part of KC you were in (low lying vs. hills).

[QueenCat]

 

All were forced to new airports, and some were then forced from F/T to P/T because their senority at the new airport couldn't hold F/T shifts.

 

And everyone in the airline business knows that everything boils down to seniority, right?

 

So my first thing would be to make a top 10 list of where his seniority would be best, taking into account COL adjustments from where you currently live.

 

 

That really depends on the airline. The airline dh worked for, based out of Atlanta, applied seniority based on original start date. People transferring in with higher start dates would knock at people who'd been there for shift bidding, f/t status, etc.

[Incognito]

I would choose primarily based on the climate. Second, cost of living.

[QueenCat]

I live near Nashville. There's plenty of affordable real estate on the North side of town within 30 minutes of town. Weather's not too different from what you're used to. (not quite as hot, we get 1-2 snows in the average winter, but overall its not too bad in winter) No state income tax. Homeschooling laws are fairly easy to work with. The recession has not hit the area too terribly, but you can still get awesome real estate deals too! I have a good friend who's a realtor I can PM you her info if you decide on this area.

 

So personally, :D :D :D I'd choose Nashville!

 

I'm with her.... we love the Nashville area. We moved here from the Atlanta area. The two things I miss the most: my friends and my free flying..... I don't miss the higher cost of living, the state income taxes, the traffic (Nashville is much easier to get around, it's much smaller). Homeschooling is easy here (although I didn't do it in Georgia, I had friends who did & I know they had to jump through more hoops than me).

[Mandylubug]

I think his line of work matters in at least arriving at a top five list.

 

My sister and brother are both airline employees, and I hold elite status on their airline because I make frequent trips for work.

 

Some of the other "regulars" on my route are employee commuters. Not just the expected flight crew, but also mechanics, rampers, and passenger service.

 

All were forced to new airports, and some were then forced from F/T to P/T because their senority at the new airport couldn't hold F/T shifts.

 

And everyone in the airline business knows that everything boils down to seniority, right?

 

So my first thing would be to make a top 10 list of where his seniority would be best, taking into account COL adjustments from where you currently live.

 

Once I had that top 10 list, I'd focus on homeschooling, weather and the other gravy in narrowing it down to five.

 

Then I'd personally visit each of the five airports (him alone, or as a family) to see if any city has that instant vibe.

 

If seniority isn't an issue for his position or at his airline, ... I'd go for wherever COL was same or less than my current home.

 

In another thread you mentioned Dallas Love field. When my sister was based at D/FW, we found the homeschooling to be easy and somewhat "normal" in terms of social acceptance. The COL was much lower than where we're originally from and housing was affordable. The weather left something to be desired, but we're from the tropics. Not a ton of snow, if ever, but summers were sometimes brutally humid. That's why there's A/C though :)

 

I did mention Dallas and it is still a contender BECAUSE that is where corporate is. He is 8 courses away from finishing his bachelors degree and could potentially transfer departments into IT. IT is based in Dallas for this company. OR we could move to another state and he stay put on his current position.

 

I do know he will keep his seniority company wide but like Atlanta, the bigger the city the more employees to compete with over lines of work, etc... it really is SO much to take in. They have promised full time lines for all employees. You would think he would be safe with nearly six years seniority :( We have to pick before May 6th. Just not enough time!

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

Columbus, OH isn't too bad. Lots of decent suburbs in driving distance to the airport. OH is a fairly easy homeschool state. Not too far of a drive to visit east coast relatives. As far as I can tell Vandalia (never heard of it) is on the outskirts of Dayton. I didn't know there was an airport in Dayton! lol! Except for the military base, maybe it would be working there??? Either spot in Ohio would get some snow, but it doesn't get as cold and snowy in those areas as it does up here in NE Ohio where I live.

[Butter]

I'd pick Texas. Definitely not Maryland. (Full disclosure: I've lived in MD all my life except 5 years in northern VA... and we are getting ready to move to Texas by choice.)

[JFSinIL]

I'd pick Nashville. You can't live within 30 minute drive, probably, of either Chicago airport (well, maybe live here in Elgin and drive into O'Hare...except there will be construction soon on the major roads to get there....)

[Mrs Mungo]

If I was picking? Austin.

[Susan C.]

I didn't think you had to live where you are based. I know some who travel to their base before they need to take off (using their free flight privileges), and they live sometimes quite far from their base.

[Tita Gidge]

 

That really depends on the airline. The airline dh worked for, based out of Atlanta, applied seniority based on original start date. People transferring in with higher start dates would knock at people who'd been there for shift bidding, f/t status, etc.

 

 

I believe that's how it works for all airlines, actually - mergers and aquisitions, aside.

 

My sister and brother have jobs that utilize different forms of seniority -- one holds company seniority (hire date) and also bidding seniority (usually hire date, adjusted for extended absences as negotiated by their union and also adjusted for aquisitions and mergers). So their company benefits are based off of hire dates but their bid schedules are based on hire dates and then some. When their airline aquired another bankrupt airline, all employees from both airlines maintained their company seniority (original hire date) but the aquired employees were given a bidding seniority (adjusted to the date their company was aquired). So though they may have had 20 years with the Aquired Airline, in terms of bidding they were starting over at the very bottom beneath everyone at my sister's and brother's airline.

 

I originally (mis-)assumed her husband worked for the ATL-based airline, but in reading more I can see I was wrong. My initial concern was that he was moving from a hub city with lots of slots ... to a smaller airport with less slots. So even a senior person could be bumped down to less desireable shifts than he held elsewhere - simply because there are less desireable slots available. But her husband seems to work for the DAL-based airline, so it's likely moot.

 

I spent six months flying into and out of Phoenix for a work project, oh ... about 4-5 years ago I think it was. I was in and out every week, and since it was a small station for my airline-of-choice, I got to know the passenger service agents very well. I wondered why I always saw the same ones, and why they were all 1000 years old LOL. An agent finally answered the question for me, saying it was a senior base for the agents. Each agent had over 35 years seniority with the airline, and nobody got in unless one of them died (because none ever retired)! So even though the most junior in Phoenix would have held the best shifts at a larger airport, she chose the crappy shifts at her smaller airport-of-choice. Senior or not, there are only so many desireable slots!

 

For her it wasn't likely an issue; for someone with a young family, I think it's important to consider.

[Tita Gidge]

I didn't think you had to live where you are based. I know some who travel to their base before they need to take off (using their free flight privileges), and they live sometimes quite far from their base.

 

 

My sister and brother both commute to work, her flight is 4.5 hours and his is 10 hours. That's before they work.

 

I think they're nuts. They assure me it's not that unusual, but that doesn't change my opinion LOL.

 

I do know that commuting my plane can be stressful.

 

Sometimes they have to leave a day early to account for weather issues in their base city, or for early sign-ins.

 

Sometimes they don't get home until a day later because of time change issues or late arrivals back to base.

 

Sometimes they come home and are knocked on their butts for a full day while dealing with jet lag.

 

(Nuts, right?!)

 

Lately the biggest problem has been the flights themselves. Their flight privileges are stand-by, and that only works if there are empty seats available. My sister and brother are eligible to use any extra jumpseats that might be available when seats are not ... but the mechanics, rampers, and service agents I mentioned before aren't able to use those so sometimes they might sit for the whole day before making it home. If they make it at all. All it takes is one cancellation (of a full flight), one weather issue, or one late return and a commuter's life all falls apart.

 

My sister, brother, and I (I'm not airline, but I travel often for work) have a stable extended family at home that allow us to do the jobs we have without worry about what's going on at home. The kids are cared for, plants are watered, mail is collected, and so forth; in return, we financially support our parents and contribute to the educations of our younger siblings who also help at home. This isn't the case for most people, though, and unless absolutely necessary I don't think even my sister and brother would recommend it for a young family without nearby support.

[Mandylubug]

 

 

I believe that's how it works for all airlines, actually - mergers and aquisitions, aside.

 

My sister and brother have jobs that utilize different forms of seniority -- one holds company seniority (hire date) and also bidding seniority (usually hire date, adjusted for extended absences as negotiated by their union and also adjusted for aquisitions and mergers). So their company benefits are based off of hire dates but their bid schedules are based on hire dates and then some. When their airline aquired another bankrupt airline, all employees from both airlines maintained their company seniority (original hire date) but the aquired employees were given a bidding seniority (adjusted to the date their company was aquired). So though they may have had 20 years with the Aquired Airline, in terms of bidding they were starting over at the very bottom beneath everyone at my sister's and brother's airline.

 

I originally (mis-)assumed her husband worked for the ATL-based airline, but in reading more I can see I was wrong. My initial concern was that he was moving from a hub city with lots of slots ... to a smaller airport with less slots. So even a senior person could be bumped down to less desireable shifts than he held elsewhere - simply because there are less desireable slots available. But her husband seems to work for the DAL-based airline, so it's likely moot.

 

I spent six months flying into and out of Phoenix for a work project, oh ... about 4-5 years ago I think it was. I was in and out every week, and since it was a small station for my airline-of-choice, I got to know the passenger service agents very well. I wondered why I always saw the same ones, and why they were all 1000 years old LOL. An agent finally answered the question for me, saying it was a senior base for the agents. Each agent had over 35 years seniority with the airline, and nobody got in unless one of them died (because none ever retired)! So even though the most junior in Phoenix would have held the best shifts at a larger airport, she chose the crappy shifts at her smaller airport-of-choice. Senior or not, there are only so many desireable slots!

 

For her it wasn't likely an issue; for someone with a young family, I think it's important to consider.

 

 

You are correct on the bidding seniority. He would have a 2yr "priority bump" for bidding if he remained in ATL. but since he will have to transfer to an outstation it will be based just on his hire date. His seniority will go by his hire date at all other outstations. Not a hub system. Supposedly no parttime lines with this airlines either.... should be ok. Just a whirlwind time frame for decision making.

[Seasider]

It is more of a "you tell us what airport you want to transfer to and we will let you know if you can" sort of thing. Just not here in our home state.

 

 

Southern states usually offer a lower cost of living. In the airline industry, I would look at the list of possibilities and select the largest hub. Seems like that would provide for more job security. Does your dh have info about the company's long-term plans?

 

I am so sorry you have to deal with this. IME, those corporate transfers have always come when things were going well. It's a bummer. But it sounds like you have a great opportunity in that you actually have some say in the matter as far as where to relocate. I agree with a poster upthread - in this economy, I would take the transfer and be thankful it's not a true layoff.

[Paige]

I'd pick the climate you want first, then look into lowest state taxes and cost of living, and then look for interesting things to do.

 

TX, TN and FL have no income taxes and are pretty inexpensive.

[*lifeoftheparty*]

We live between Baltimore and DC. We LOVE it here, however, cost if living is high. If your DH is the sole wage earner, I would not live here if he makes less than $100K a year. You won't be wealthy with that, but you would be comfortable. The particular area you chose to live in would decide if you could get a single family home, or a townhouse.

 

San Francisco has a higher cost of living than we do. It would be really cool to live there :)

 

I would probably go with the 3 you listed, OP, but I have never been to any of those places, nor do I know what COL is there.

 

Definitely research COL and factor that in to your decision.

 

And yes, we would transfer, definitely. You gotta go where the jobs are.

[Murmer]

I know you said little snow...but Manchester NH is a great area. It can be rural or cityish depending on where you live. You would also be about 2 hours from downtown Boston or the NH coast. Yes there is snow...but they do a good job of keeping it clear. NH is a pretty easy state to homeschool in from what I have heard (we are considering crossing state lines so have checked a bit). Good luck

 

ETA: NH has no income tax and no sales tax.

[Seasider]

Ft Myers would be first on *my* list. But given your criteria, I would choose (1) Austin TX (2) Nashville TN (3) Dallas TX. Keep in mind that the Texas has no state income tax (somebody correct me if I'm wrong there). That would make a difference in your take home pay.

[happypamama]

My husband thinks the Fort Collins, CO area sounds really great. He hasn't been there, though, but "on paper" it looks interesting to him. Seems like a lot of great stuff to do there.

 

Baltimore isn't bad; it's pretty nice in the mid-Atlantic. COL isn't terrible (especially if you're not *right* in the cities), and the weather is fairly mild -- some snow but not like New England, occasional tornado warnings but not like the south, warm in the summer but not like the south, etc. I'd have said that for Baltimore, you could live up in the York, PA area, where COL is even lower, but then you'd be more than 30 minutes from BWI (which isn't actually in Baltimore; it's more like Annapolis, but you might find some reasonably priced suburbs somewhere).

[Mandylubug]

Thank you everyone! I am optimistic of our options and thankful for choices. I think I am going to log off the computer, stop scouring craigslist for rentals and figure out dinner. My poor kids just popped some popcorn because they were tired of waiting on me. We cancelled school today due to the news.

[elegantlion]

Kansas City would have a lower cost of living. The airport is in what is called "North of the river". It was basically in the middle of nowhere when I was a kid, grew up around there. Now it's suburban. You would have a pick of nice living areas within 30 minutes. KC has a lot of homeschoolers, lots to do in the area. Central location for travel.

 

Weather can be variable. It's usually spring and nice by now, but we caught a bit of the snow (which is highly unusual). We do have tornadoes.

 

The airport itself is nice. It's 3 terminals, easy layout. I worked there eons ago. Supposedly it's an easier airport to get around because of the layout. Lots of older airline people in the area as TWA used to have their overhaul base here.

[LisaKinVA]

Nashville, TN

Kansas City, MO

Oklahoma City, OK

Fort Myers, FL

 

These would be my choices, given your criteria. MD isn't what I'd really consider "homeschool friendly" DC area is expensive, although if you are talking IAD (Dulles), you can live less expensively closer to that airport than National...although I understand about tornadoes in OK, having lived in AR, not too far from OK, I can tell you we've had more tornadoes close to where I live in VA than we did in AR!

[Mnemosyne]

FWIW, Spokane WA is often totally covered with snow during the winter, and lots of it. If you chose to live there, you may want to try to live away from the hills, last time we were there people were sliding down them constantly. ;) Otherwise, it's an amazing city, and WA is good for homeschoolers. No worries about tornadoes, flooding, etc - just the snow during the winter.

[speedmom4]

My mom has worked for the airlines for about 35 years. You really can't beat the flying benefits and insurance.

 

You have an amazing list of places to choose from. My top three would be Denver, Ft. Meyers, and Austin.

 

Good luck!

 

Elise in NC