Posted on 12/03/2009 3:07:34 PM PST by MNDude
I was curious to hear how the economy has been effecting everyone's lives and communities? Has your job been effected, or do you see empty strip-malls on your block?
How are you handling the new troubles that come with such an economy?
Central eastern Georgia. Just read the new reports, we are now at 20% officially. I can’t imagine what the U6 numbers are.
http://www.thecitizen.com/~citizen0/node/40917
Georgia’s highest unemployment rate, 20.4 percent, is found Hancock County in the east central portion of the state ...
You know, I ALWAYS have trouble with that one! I go back and forth when I’m typing and usually rely on eenie meenie mynie mo. That’s a tough one. Like “insure” or “ensure”.
Retired for two years.
I had moved all my 401k assets to fixed income in August 2007, at the point that the Dow was trading sideways. Got out at Dow of 12800+, into 6% fixed income.
Wife lost 23 year job in Oct 2007, but with a year of severance.
Bought house in coastal Texas on a golf course via a bridge loan; sold our waterfront home in RI after nine months, took a $450k hit from what it had been worth three years ago.
Living in Texas - no state income tax, property tax $5000 versus $12,000; auto tax 0 versus $2,000, now sales tax is 8.25% versus 7.0%. Home improvement labor rate is about $35 per hour, versus $70 per hour. We’re Walmart shoppers
The downside is that I sweat in the summers, and need to dial #2 to get English telephone messages, and to try to find meaningful $$$ employment is difficult.
But I can live off the cash equity from the RI house for the next six years, before needing to tap into my taxable 401K.
Overall I’m OK.
I hope that our country can survive Zer0 for the next three years. We need to retake the House and Senate next year, whatever it takes to stop this socialist madness!
I work slight off hours, 9:30am - 6:00pm. I am pretty much the last one in my apartment complex to leave for work, because in the ~40 car parking lot everyone would be gone.
Before BHO there would be only 2 or 3 cars left by the time I left. I remember this because 2 years ago my battery died on some weekday and there was nobody to get a jump from and if I came home for lunch I was always able to park right in front.
Now, there’s about 10-12 every morning. If I come home for lunch I still have to park far away. There’s another 2nd lot in my complex and it looks like the same is happenings there.
So either many of the other tenets have brought a bunch of extra cars they don’t use during or many of them are now unemployed.
By the way, notice I said that Walmart was laying off? This is Christmas season! That was the one thing most around here was relying on. It was the ‘go to’ and folks were waiting around for Christmas season to get some cash, but not this go round.
we have yet to use the heater... it was 54 degrees in our home this morning... i’ve begun using coupons, something i’ve never bothered with before... we mostly hang our clothes out to dry... now that it’s cold out, we hang them in our house at night... to me, this is crazy... we are almost back to where my parents’ parents were... i’ve not noticed any change in the number of cars i see filling up the parking lots in restaurants in town... seems people are still going out to eat...
Inventory Control. Incoming merchandise shipments are low. My hours which usually increase beginning in September to ready for Christmas stock have remained low. No pay increase in two years. The stores in our district (20) are running anywhere from 20 to 50% below last years sales number.
Equipment Specialist: My small town is dependant on a local Army r&d/logistics post, with a NASA operations center co-located. Right now the defense insdustry is well funded so the local economy is good.
I retired from the Army as an E-7 after almost 22yrs of active service, so I get a small monthly check from that. After retirement I was hired as a civilian employee by the Department of the Army. Bottom line: Me and the wife are ok.
unemployed since Feb. Had 28 years with the company. It sucks....it is brutal...
Oh, and I wanted to let you know for your information gathering...
We took a trip last month to a heavy industrial area in the Tennessee/Kentucky/Virgina area and also the coal mines. We would be willing to relocate and used some savings to make the trip hoping it to be an investment since I couldn’t find a way to apply online.
When we got there, we went to all the plants and factories. Now keep in mind my husband has robotic arms technician licensing and is a certified welder (he went to school for a while after he got laid off realizing manufacturing isn’t here anymore), but there were signs on the buildings that said “Not hiring, please do not inquire”.
It reminded me of those signs during the Depression “No jobs here, keep moving” and I would have cried if the kids weren’t in the car.
Silicon Valley software firm. Laid off 10% staff today; survivors got wacked with 10% pay cut. Q3 was awful; Q4 not much better. 12 hour days many times last 6 months, except yesterday was 15 hours.
The area where I live is littered with many, many closed down and vacant former new car dealerships - big sprawling lots and multi-million dollar showrooms sit empty.
Strip malls are loaded with empty storefronts.
Home prices continue to drop.
Yet city and county politicians continue to push for new taxes and continue to approve more multi-million dollar government boondoggles, even while freezing raises for police, firemen, etc.
“many closed down and vacant former new car dealerships - big sprawling lots and multi-million dollar showrooms sit empty.”
Same here. One dealership just built and moved to a new showroom three years ago. Completely vacant now.
Oh and we are in desperate need of a new courthouse and jail. Just had a SPLOST tax vote to pay, but people are fed up. This courthouse is over 100 years old, 100 years to keep the ceiling from falling in (yes, there is insulation hanging from the ceiling) but NOW, during the worst time since Depression, it has to be done.
Most people are just ticked off it hasn’t been done by now.
Attended the International Motorsports Industry Show here in Indy this week. A trade show for manufacturers of race cars and parts.
http://www.imis-indy.com/page.php?page_id=29
Attendance was robust.
Everybody is worried because sponsorships are withering, but racers are by nature generally optimistic.
Forgot to mention the one bright spot.
After an initial explosion in out-of-work-illegals their numbers have dwindled to the point the Home Depot parking lots and most street corners are now almost empty of illegal aliens looking for work.
Last fall, I took him to go grape picking , (we have world class Pinot Noir here abouts.)
After a couple of hours, he called me to pick him up. The winery had all they could use in just two hours of picking. A huge crowd showed up for a chance to pick grapes for a dollar a bucket.
I was hoping to not participate, but got stuck right in the middle when I got called into a meeting June 1 and walked out without a job. Due to good severance and a life of no debt besides the house, we weathered the storm well. This week I started a new job 500 miles from home, leaving the family behind. (Anyone want to buy a house)
Job is going well, family seems to be OK this week. We’ll see how th erest goes.
I’ve been a stay at home wife for most of my married life. Dh has worked at the same place for 32 years they make liquior bottles. He so far has not had a cut in hours and they have minimal lay offs and mostly only those who were hired in the past 2 years. We don’t buy as much non needed items other than that we really haven’t changed much.
I’ve been a stay at home wife for most of my married life. Dh has worked at the same place for 32 years they make liquior bottles. He so far has not had a cut in hours and they have minimal lay offs and mostly only those who were hired in the past 2 years. We don’t buy as much non needed items other than that we really haven’t changed much. The are has very high unemployment here is SE Ohio. Our couty is just a tad under 13% unemployed but it is probably closer to 25% or higher because we nevr recovered from what Clinton caused in the 90’s with the clean air act.
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