I am planning to open a business in a shopping center (approx 1400-1800 sq ft) and found out that the build-out will be extremely expensive in FL since construction costs are very high here. I am willing to open my business in another state but can’t find information on which states have low (or even just lower than FL) construction costs. I am especailly interested in the comparison of construction costs between FL and the pacific NW.
Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

We are planning on moving to Vegas this summer. My husband is a licensed General Contractor here where we live. However, he doesn’t think he is going to get his contractors license in Nevada. At least not right away til he gets a feel for the industry there first. In the meantime, he would want to work for someone else. He is an excellent contractor with over 25+ years in the industry, but, he wants to get away from framing and go into more finish work, cabinet construction and install, remodeling, decks, patios, add ons, etc. Is there a market for these skills without a license. And what kind of pay could he realistically expect with these skills and years of experience?
Are there plenty of good paying jobs around? Or is the money mostly in being a licensed person in this trade. Right now he is earning only around $25K - $30K. He wants to make more money without the hassles of licensing. Is this possible?