I have been teaching for fifteen years, but I get paid for only eleven. This is because I moved (due to my dh being active duty Navy). That is a HUGE drawback to teaching - the loss of pay because most districts only pay for five years of experience. If we moved again, I would lose over $15,000 a year for the remainder of my teaching career, not counting how this would affect my retirement, so I am completely STUCK living where we do. That is another consideration when going into teaching. You pretty much have to stay in one location if you want to make a decent living. You also have to continue your education in order to stay licensed. I am currently taking five hours of graduate classes (I already have a Masters), just so that I can complete my MA+15 to get an extra $1000 a year. Pay is based on years of experience and level of education. You don't get raises for being a great teacher. You just end up getting more duties (such as being a mentor for new teachers), and the district expects more "volunteer" time (as in writing curriculum).
I love teaching. I didn't love moonlighting at least 30 hours a week on top of my teaching high school English for the first four years of my career so I could make ends meet. I signed up for every sporting event and coached two sports to make extra money too. It was tough in the beginning, but now I am making enough to not have to work two jobs and afford to put my kids in a private school. (Ironic, huh? - since I teach in a public school...)