If you want to compare bargain-basement, okay. I can get you something in that range, too. But, just like the current listings I see in Mason City, there won't be many of them, they'll be older, likely very maintenance intensive and energy inefficient or in need of significant updates, and be in areas that are okay but most definitely borderline or in outlying areas/communities with modest commute. I also see that getting into something more common, more updated, more centrally located, and in an area more likely to be stable long-term puts you square in the $140-$170k range, just like here.
I notice the Cargill job has a couple of preferred qualifications which kick it solidly out of "entry level" territory, making it unsuitable as a comparison to Amazon's entry-level box kicker position. Companies don't put those kind of qualifications in unless they intend to use them, usually as a way to promote from within or pick up experienced personnel from the outside.
https://careers.cargill.com/job/mason-city/processing-team-member-baked-patty-line-2nd-shift-full-time-mason-city-ia/23251/18344074
A more accurately comparable position would be the Production Worker position. Unfortunately they don't give a wage range for it, but I'd bet a good hamburger it will start, at best, somewhere around twelve or thirteen bucks an hour.
https://careers.cargill.com/job/cedar-rapids/production-worker/23251/18138198
Brad
They are hurting bad for employees, it's entry level. Those are preferred qualifications fyi, not required. I play trivia with one of the supervisors, he laments how they can't find anyone.
I just had coffee with one of the management team from another local factory, a door manufacturer. I asked him what is the starting wage was for someone fresh out of high school with min skills, he told me 17.00/hr and over 20 in a 2 years with a decent work record. They can't find anyone.
Those 80k houses are for sale by private owner, a lot folks have buying older homes for cheap, gutting them and making them move in ready, everything is new in them. Hope was to make them rentals but people learn they don't want to be landlords. These older homes were either past rentals or owned by the same people for 40-60 years. They cheap like 20k to buy but you gotta throw 40k into them. People don't want to move here because it's Iowa, we got cold snowy winters, no avocado toast, and there is "nothing to do".
I moved here 5 years ago because it's cheap living, I get paid a lot more than I did in a college town and I actually (pre covid) have a lot more things to do. Tons of water to boat on. Tons of class 1 and 2 rapids in the local rivers to canoe/kayak. Live music galore. I can be in downtown Minneapolis and walking into Target Field in 2 hrs or downtown Des Moines in an hour 45.
Most of the new construction is the typical fast built vinyl encased crap shack popping up everywhere since the 1990s.
Also we need to stop accepting $15/hr as an acceptable full time hourly wage, we are just accepting that wage stagnation is just fine.
My computer crapped the bed so I'm writing this on my phone.
