Best city to move to as an enterprise AE (Only moneywise)

Hi, I know this is a super general question, but I'm an American citizen living abroad and am planning on moving back to the States next year. I have 4 years of successful AE experience in tech companies selling to the USA.


Now I want to move back with my wife and I'm a bit not sure where is best to move? Of course, California/NY have the highest salary but also the highest taxes so not sure if that's good.


So a few more variables I'm a bit confused about, are there a lot of remote jobs in the USA now? So I can live basically in the city I want and still probably find a job?


Any guidance will help! Thanks :)

🎈 Mentorship
15
1nbatopshotfan
Politicker
6
Sales
Honestly, you’ll find good remote work everywhere. I’d set your focus on where you want to live versus finding a location based on your job.

Our three most recent AE hires have been from a random town in Ohio, Minnesota and the tech hub of Vermont.
poweredbycaffeine
WR Lieutenant
4
☕️
Cows and tech. That’s what Vermont does.
1nbatopshotfan
Politicker
5
Sales
And hazy IPA
jefe
Arsonist
2
🍁
This is the best advice. It's about so much more than work.
poweredbycaffeine
WR Lieutenant
3
☕️
Boston is great. Yes, taxes, but great hub. Nashville & Dallas/Austin are state income tax free (same with New Hampshire…but just don’t).

Pick somewhere with accesss to activities you enjoy most and go from there.
CuriousFox
WR Officer
2
🦊
Stay the hell outta TX if you are a female. That's all.
HVACexpert
Politicker
2
sales engineer
If you are looking for most bang for your buck I’d stay away from the coasts, your dollar will go a lot farther in some areas and allow for nicer things or bigger house for the family, etc.

But really depends on your interests
Sunbunny31
Politicker
2
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
CA has a ton of open space for recreation; TX is largely private. It totally depends on what you want out of your day to day life.
oldcloser
Arsonist
1
💀
Muh freedom. Muh guns.
Sunbunny31
Politicker
1
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
Except you have no available open space for hunting, if you want, for example. You can’t pull a permit and just head out - you have to know, and pay, a landowner. Anyway.
Kosta_Konfucius
Politicker
2
Sales Rep
Being in tech sales gives you a lot of flexibility where you live, so I would go where your wife needs to be to find a good role
Sunbunny31
Politicker
1
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
Totally depends on what you want to do and the lifestyle you want. As a Californian, yes, there are high taxes. But other states will also find a way to get theirs, and often in hidden ways, so don’t let that be your only guide. People have extreme bias, so be careful where you source your information.

I’m currently sitting in Minnesota, surrounded by company headquarters. Last month, NH, just outside Boston - lovely. Lots of options out there depending on what you are looking for.
braintank
Politicker
1
Enterprise Account Executive
You're in MN now?!
Sunbunny31
Politicker
1
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
Right now, yes. Up near Blaine, where there’s a massive ice complex. At NAPHL.
poweredbycaffeine
WR Lieutenant
1
☕️
I live in a state you have recently visited that has no state income tax or sales tax…but personal property tax is WILDLY high. They always get theirs.
Sunbunny31
Politicker
0
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
And in another state I was in earlier this week for work, the gas is cheaper, but you give the difference back with all the toll roads.

Honestly though, I’m not prone to beat up on individual states too much. It’s more that “but I pay less in taxes” means something else is being given up, or you are paying and your clever chamber of commerce and state government are neglecting to mention it. That said, just about every state has something compelling about it.
NoToBANT
Catalyst
1
Senior Account Executive
Texas: just moved from abroad to Texas. No Income tax, depending on where you are right now - relatively low cost of living - get a lot more for your money

Also great weather (besides June-Aug)
Sunbunny31
Politicker
2
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
Which city? There are differences. And sorry, as a female, 100% do not recommend Texas.
NoToBANT
Catalyst
1
Senior Account Executive
That is fair enough! Some of the laws are draconian for sure

In all honesty, Houston (suburb of) has been great to us so far. Having said that, being a non-citizen means we only experience the good things.

Soooo fair play to @Sunbunny31
Tdd
Valued Contributor
0
Account Executive
Why not safe?
braintank
Politicker
2
Enterprise Account Executive
As a reasonable male I can't either
Sunbunny31
Politicker
1
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
Check out the recent rulings on healthcare. Would you prefer that a crooked AG make your healthcare decisions, or you, in consultation with a qualified medical professional?

Plus what I predict will be the natural consequence of these decisions - the lack of qualified medical care for people as doctors leave the state for one that won’t potentially jail them for doing their jobs. No thank you.
Sunbunny31
Politicker
1
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
I just want the state to be better. I have friends and customers there. There have been struggles - infrastructure (power outages during both extreme cold & hot events) explosive cost for energy … it’s a big state full of great people. It deserves better.
Tdd
Valued Contributor
0
Account Executive
If you’re talking about the abortion thing in Texas so yes that is a bit messed up, but I’m not going back to the USA hoping for free healthcare haha
Sunbunny31
Politicker
0
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
It’s not free healthcare. It’s any or available healthcare. When providers leave, you cannot easily get any services. I just wouldn’t.
Tdd
Valued Contributor
0
Account Executive
I see
oldcloser
Arsonist
1
💀
This all day
jefe
Arsonist
4
🍁
TX infrastructure seems like it was built as if it would never rain, never snow, never experience frost, never have a gust of wind...
NoToBANT
Catalyst
2
Senior Account Executive
Lollllll this made me laugh. First December here was a bit of a shock. Had to leave taps lightly running so they didn’t freeze over.

#CultureShock
jefe
Arsonist
1
🍁
Up here in Canada everything was built to handle whatever can come at us lol.
Thankfully we don't really deal with hurricanes, tornadoes are few and far between for most of the country. Basically just the ice/cold and rain.
oldcloser
Arsonist
1
💀
Great cost of life in Nevada. But if you like to gamble or have any leaks at all, stay away.
saaskicker
Celebrated Contributor
1
Enterprise AE
EAE is typically remote friendly, the territory you cover will probably be where you're located. Want to move to a cheap cost of living state? Your prospects are going to be around you and most likely smaller in scale. The EAE roles in SF/NYC pay because you're probably working with companies that in that area, are generally bigger orgs. There's more Enterprise companies in the HCOL places. If you want to cover a nice territory, live in a LCOL area, you're going to join a smaller company with less resources to get an ENT deal done.
wolfofmiami
Opinionated
0
🐺
A lot of remote if you want to avoid taxes and still work remote gotta look in the south. Austin TX seems like it’s the new big tech city. Miami has some, but with venture moving there and finance moving there tech is gonna come soon they’re trying to make Miami the next silicon.
poweredbycaffeine
WR Lieutenant
1
☕️
First to get swept into the Atlantic when the mega storm hits. Get a surf board!
wolfofmiami
Opinionated
1
🐺
lol they've said that since 1950
Sunbunny31
Politicker
1
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
I’m in California, where we are going to break off into the ocean when the next Big One hits! Hold on tight!
SaasSlingin
Politicker
0
Sr AE
Enterprise sales tends to have more flexibility sure but there’s networking opportunities and resources available in just just some places and less so in most.

But generally ask yourself do you want something vibrant? More quiet and peaceful? Certain kind of people you enjoy more? Weather preference?
Space_Ghost20
Valued Contributor
0
Account Executive
We moved from Northern Virginia to San Antonio almost 2 years ago. As others have said, there are trade offs to everything. Some things were better in Virginia, other things San Antonio excels at by comparison. Weather, for example. Even with the scorching summer we had this year, I vastly prefer San Antonio weather. We're a week away from Christmas and it's going to be close to 70 degrees all week, back home they're in the 40s.

On remote work though, yes in theory you can work from anywhere and be fine. But if you end up laid off/fired or whatever and need to find a job, not being in a traditional tech hub can be a detriment. You essentially end up being limited to only remote roles (which often have the most competition). I'm finding this out now myself. There are a handful of tech companies here in San Antonio, so my job search efforts are mostly focused on remote roles and jobs in Austin (about a 2 hour commute each way). Just something to think about. If you're in constant demand, then this is less of an issue.
buffinsc
Member
0
Account Executive
I think it depends on your preference and what your looking for in life. Like you mentioned its a general ask lol but my two cents are there are a decent amount of sales jobs that pay NY or SF salaries that you can live where you see fit and even move yearly if you arent looking to settle with Children.
0
Chief Sales & Marketing Officer
Dallas and Atlanta are both good choices. DFW has the added advantage of being in Texas...so no income taxes. Atlanta is a thriving economy, so should be plentiful opportunities. On the "Remote" front...not all remote is created equal. Some are still control focused and want you remote from a cost perspective, but want you still local in case they want you to come into the office. I've seen postings that list Remote US...then specify 3-4 cities where you must be located. Also, not every employer can hire employees in every state, but they seldom state in which states they employ. I'd suggest identifying 3-4 places you most want to live, then decide between them on the employability of those locations. If you have been living abroad for a while, the dynamics of the US have changed quite a bit the last few years. So places you remember from when you lived here, may not look or feel the same when you return.
Armageddon
Opinionated
0
Enterprise Account Executive
I think it really depends on the space and company penetration. For example at my company, SF, LA and NY have the best accounts, but they also have the most reps and therefore their account lists are kind of saturated. Where as if you go to a "emerging market" you can have a higher concentration of good accounts with more opportunity
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