My brother and his wife had to move to a small town to be morticians. Small towns are the only place they can find jobs, as you can imagine, there isn't a whole lot of turnaround in that business. I also believe that real estate option is sort of silly...I mean, would you decide to move away from 99% of your customers? Realestate is a city boys market, unless you can tell me the name of a major realator estate company that is located in grandpa's corn field, I ain't buying it.
Thanks for your input. I tried to add to your rep points but it said I gave too much in the last 24 hours, so I'll do it later on. You've got a good point, but it's not a major company by any means; just a small business trying to sell homes to retirees by using the rural nature and warm weather of northern FL as an appeal. And I sort of need her to be a real estate agent because I need to give her a plausible reason to enter unoccupied homes. I do have a major character in the story who is a mortician, though.
My original suggestion was a Real Estate DEVELOPER - someone seeing the possibility of cheap land and property to do up and sell on as holiday homes. Mallory what about making her a building/land surveyor ?
I think real estate sounds a good option, because the MC would have keys to creepy old properties and need to go around looking at plots of land maybe. I would suggest spending a day or two in a real estate office as well as researching online, though.
NP. Journalist can be sent to investigate the brain drain. Can be temporarily, meets the love of her life, well.... . But anyway, pity you didn't trigger on the Feng Shui angle. I found it quite a good find, as not many people know about it, it adds mystery to your story, can be linked to Yakuza or similar, etc
By the way, some companies send their people to remote locations temporarily, if their job requires this, but this may last up to several months or even half a year, so it may feel just like moving there. During that time, they would be living in a hotel, hostel or furnished appartment. Depending on how willing the company is to spend money, this can result in them living in a pretty run-down and creepy place.
Does it have to be the job that takes them there? Could there be another reason for them going there and the job is (a means to an end) a 'realistic seemingly ' reason to be there. She/he (having met someone at college) could be love-sick and the object of their unrequited love could live in this small town. Thereby they deliberately set out to find a job in this town to be near their 'secret love' in the hope that they'll be noticed. A horror story - stalker springs to mind, or as it been over done? or A family member has a business in the town and they go to work for them.
It's not silly at all. Even small towns have real estate offices. Many people make a good living selling real estate in smaller, even in depressed, communities.
Well, Yes. Usually in the small communities however, the realestate broker is also the local plumber or something and it is a part time gig. There just isn't enough work. Mallory said isolated, dying small town. To me that suggests 150-250 people. How much would really be for sale? Maybe 5 properties on the high side unless there is a reason everyone would abandon their homes, in which case the property would be worth very little. My uncle and cousin bought 3 houses in Bessemer Michigan after the mine or whatever closed. Out of the few thousand that lived there, 2/3's packed up and left. He was able to buy the houses for 10-15k because the town was worthless. Not a ton of money to be made selling $150,000 houses for 15k. Elgaisma suggested realestate developer, which is a better fit I suppose.
I really appreciate all the helpful friends I have on the boards. Thanks guys. Elg - developer, yes that works -- or as she's new from college, she can work as an intern or something for one. I wrote 3,000 words on this last night. So I think I'm good now.
