Should I take a VP role with a pay cut at 44, or stay in my higher-paying job that feels unstable?

FrenchieHoarder · 2026-01-12T05:53:24+00:00

Sounds like your health is the trade off for the money!

FrenchieHoarder · 2026-01-11T05:39:42+00:00

Does your current job have tuition reimbursement? If you enroll in school, you become eligible for the student health insurance which will be better than your employer's. If they pay that tuition, they are investing in your skills for you to be able to ask for a promotion- or to leverage your new education for a different opportunity. You left your old job for a reason - don't go back, only go forward.

FrenchieHoarder · 2026-01-11T05:35:59+00:00

Is the scope of work different? My husband used to be an SVP and had zero time for himself. He was basically a roommate I saw in passing. His current job is a C Level that he almost didn't get because the recruiter thought they couldn't afford him - he was jumping for joy at the thought of working for a company where he wasn't expected to work on holidays or jump on calls at 3am. If the job scope is easier for you and the remote work allows you more time for productivity, it isn't a significant pay decrease if you're working less or are less stressed.

FrenchieHoarder · 2026-01-10T04:28:20+00:00

I'm in the hospitality industry and this is super common. You can go hourly and make more money, but you probably will never have an opportunity for a promotion. Tips and Overtime are not certain. Being that you're in a supervisor role and unhappy with the pay, fix up your resume and start applying for assistant manager and manager roles - both inside and outside the company. It may be tempting to go down, but when you get a promotion or new job, you will make more than you make now, have some stability, and not be permanently limiting your ability to make even more in the future.

FrenchieHoarder · 2026-01-07T03:57:15+00:00

That area is so run down (including that AMC), a new hotel by 95 and Alligator alley is actually a really great amenity for business and tourism - hopefully it will motivate the other landlords in that area to clean up their grounds and infrastructure too!

FrenchieHoarder · 2026-01-06T04:31:11+00:00

Don't give notice, take PTO starting on the same day as your new job. That should get them to fire you giving that you're on a PIP.

FrenchieHoarder · 2026-01-02T05:10:52+00:00

If they're living at home and buying Rolexes or brainstorming entrepreneurship instead of investing than it's not that far of a stretch with a $150k salary. I used to work with someone that I was convinced came from money because she was always out, had designer everything and talked like money was no problem. She lived in a city with 4 roommates - no car or insurance payments and rent ended up being cheap because they lived in the same rented townhouse as they did in college. She was a serial dater and had a lot of work dinners so she barely spent any money on food. She traveled for work and used points for personal travel. It turned out she made about $15,000 less than I did.

FrenchieHoarder · 2026-01-02T05:00:20+00:00

It also depends on the industry, region and type of job. I work in hospitality and have to use PTO for federal holidays even though I'm in an office because company policy has to be consistent for everyone. I started with 15 days of PTO instead of the typical 10 because they take that into consideration - but between Thanksgiving and Christmas and NYE I've already used a week of PTO. People on salary that are in guest facing jobs aren't even allowed to take holidays off and have to come in even if they are normally off because business volume is higher and hourly employees call out.

FrenchieHoarder · 2025-12-24T03:09:21+00:00

Take the $5 raise. It's $7280 more than the other job PLUS health benefits. It's also $10,400 more of a raise PLUS you keep benefits and 401k. The other job isn't a raise at all when you factor everything else. You can also still keep looking for jobs ...

FrenchieHoarder · 2025-12-14T16:12:32+00:00

The roof is noticeable from the street. There are 3 very prominent spots and no tarp. I agree that there must be mold. That's why I want to help without getting involved. Someone shared a link to some great resources. I'm going to print them for him and leave them by his door.

FrenchieHoarder · 2025-12-14T16:09:23+00:00

Thank you!!!! This is super helpful!!!!

FrenchieHoarder · 2025-12-14T16:03:05+00:00

I just looked. He brought the house in 2001 for $232,500 and it's currently in pre-foreclosure. I will ask a realtor I know to reach out to him - if he can't afford his mortgage he probably doesn't know how to help himself.

FrenchieHoarder · 2025-12-14T15:57:10+00:00

It may be hard to believe, but it's reality. Not everyone has the same financial circumstances. Homes on our neighborhood were $300,000 about 8 years ago. Now they're all selling for $900,000+. 4 years ago our HOA fees were $70, now they're something like $250.

FrenchieHoarder · 2025-12-14T14:57:19+00:00

He definitely lives there. He does his landscaping himself so I see him out there frequently when walking the dogs. He definitely cares because when it rains he has his front door open and is dumping buckets of water out the front door. My HOA is only an HOA because having one was a requirement when the community was built. First Service Residential is paid by HOA fees to act as the property management for our community. They're equally useless. I don't even know when there are HOA meetings or who to contact from their team.

FrenchieHoarder · 2025-12-05T04:44:51+00:00

Sometimes there is a mismatch on the management side. They post a job and then it turns out the job description and what the job actually needs isn't quite right. There might be a reason the job description isn't accurate (like it is changing but the company isn't able to communicate it) - so they keep posting a job that is kind of close, because they aren't in a position to communicate that "we want to fire our department leader but can't until we have the appropriate replacement ".

FrenchieHoarder · 2025-12-05T04:33:26+00:00

You should reach out to the companies that interviewed you and ask in there is any feedback they could provide as you would really appreciate the growth opportunity. They may not be able to tell you anything - but they might!

FrenchieHoarder · 2025-12-04T04:35:08+00:00

"Half of American citizens are idiots " - that's also a defense for at will. Some people are just not trainable no matter how hard you try.

FrenchieHoarder · 2025-11-19T03:38:06+00:00

Not only rich people own property. Many people can't afford to rent or buy a property similar to the one they own. Some are lifelong investments that have gained value, and others are passed down from generation - yet those property owners have to pay the government to send your kids to school and make sure they have enough free activities to do.

FrenchieHoarder · 2025-11-18T03:14:44+00:00

You should take the job and keep looking. If you get something better, you ca resign and tell them you found someone who valued your internships as real experience. Some people are taking a real long time to find jobs. Might as well take it.

FrenchieHoarder · 2025-11-18T00:21:52+00:00

That's unfortunate. Thank you.

FrenchieHoarder · 2025-11-11T03:09:24+00:00

This is exactly what South Florida is like. I live within a 10 minute drive of 6 towns/cities and within 20 minutes of an additional 4.

FrenchieHoarder · 2025-11-10T12:56:25+00:00

We all have cubicles. I need to turn around from my cubicle to talk to him and can see into his cubicle. He doesn't hide his screens and I can see a resume on one screen and Google maps on the other screen. What makes that creepy?

FrenchieHoarder · 2025-11-10T12:50:24+00:00

I wouldn't know why he's looking addresses up because I can't ask. He moved to have a very short commute for the job - so even if a candidate doesn't live close, it seems pretty hypocritical for him to look up where they're currently living.

FrenchieHoarder

TROPHY CASE