Posted by:
samwitch
(
)
Date: February 12, 2018 10:56AM
It's no mystery why people flee Utah. It's the money.
Let's take Provo for instance:
Housing is getting more and more expensive for renters:
https://www.rentjungle.com/average-rent-in-provo-rent-trends/and buyers:
https://www.zillow.com/utah-county-ut/home-values/Median home price is $344K; median rental is $1425/mo. Even the DesNews ran a story on this:
https://www.deseretnews.com/article/865683214/Report-94-hour-workweek-required-at-minimum-wage-to-afford-2-bedroom-apartment-in-Utah.htmlIt's a problem because Utah has one of the highest percentages of low-wage workers (less than $12/hr):
https://policy-practice.oxfamamerica.org/work/poverty-in-the-us/low-wage-map/Although Utah.gov no longer publishes online data on the percent of jobs that pay less than $15/hour, most people here are aware that Utah is notorious for low pay, even for jobs that require degrees. This news article says that almost 1/4 of Utah jobs are in low-wage occupations:
http://www.thespectrum.com/story/news/2017/07/25/low-wages-little-savings-among-many-utah-families/509722001/Even jobs that require degrees and experience often pay less than $15/hr; one family member who graduated last year with a BS in Behavioral Science felt lucky to grab a full-time job with benefits that paid $14.25/hr, when many classmates couldn't find anything that good.
Basically, if you want to survive financially here without a tech degree or a career flipping houses, good luck.