If you are a tech professional and you’re looking for a new position, we’d like to dispel some misconceptions. Yes, San Francisco, New York and now Austin, Texas are tech job hotbeds, but if you don’t want expensive housing, horrible traffic, and crowded downtown areas, you might want to consider the Midwest, because some of the nation’s best tech jobs are there and here’s why:
Climate
You don’t get the full four-season treatment in San Francisco. Sure, the weather is mostly temperate even in the winter, but it’s tough to get an 80-degree summer day, and you really have to like 60 degrees to be happy there. Contrast that with Chicago and Milwaukee. While admittedly, summer seasons there are a lot shorter than Austin, for example, there’s nothing quite like the stillness after the first substantial snowfall, and fall can be a beautiful and colorful time of year. And, after a long Midwestern winter, you can be treated to a great spring.
Rents
National rents are exorbitant in places like San Francisco and New Your City while you’ll find that living in St. Paul or Milwaukee can be quite affordable. A college town like Ames, Iowa can present even more cheap housing opportunities.
Home Prices
Owning a home in many California cities is next to impossible unless you can get used to $8500+ mortgage payments. Contrast that Minnesota where the median home price is around $235,000. Minnesota also officially sanctions a practice called contract for a deed where prospective homeowners with bad credit can eventually own homes.
Work Ethic
The Midwestern work ethic is not a myth. After World War II many veterans settled into jobs that they would hold for a full thirty years. They could then retire and enjoy a mortgage-free home. Stable midwestern family values and good parental examples have persisted, and companies are finding that midwestern workers are prized, and therefore many tech companies are opening offices in midwestern cities.
Retail Space
Office space in Duluth, MN, according to loopnet.com can be had for less than $2.00 per square foot. Contrast that with downtown office space in Austin, Texas that commonly goes for over $55.00 per square foot, and you can understand why many tech companies are embracing the Midwest.
And remember, if you are a business owner, it doesn’t matter where your business is located, because you can choose to work with remote Midwestern employees. That means that if you really love Miami and don’t want to move your business to Fargo, you don’t have to because there are quality employees throughout the Midwest that would love the opportunity to work remotely for you.
Also consider that because some midwestern cities have been given the “rustbelt” label, they have gone out of their way to attract tech companies through tax and other incentives. This of course then brings more tech jobs to these areas.
Whether you are a tech worker or a business owner, it behooves you to check out the great opportunities that the Midwest offers.
