I really want to move to a more lgbt active area. And I'm not out to my family so I want to be able to be myself. I'd like to live close to the beach, not on it for I know it's really expensive. But for a 350 mile move how much money should I save up? I put applications in just to see how hard it would be to score a job in the area and I've already been in touch with human resources at one place so I don't think it will be hard to find a job there. I've just never moved so I have no idea what I'm doing. Any advice appreciated!
This is difficult to answer without knowing how much stuff you have and need to move, or where you are moving to, or what kind of work you do. Here's some things to think about: Expenses for the trip itself - moving truck, packing supplies, friends to help, plan your route, money for food, gas. Living expenses - will you move directly into an apartment, or motel until you find somewhere to live? You will need to prepare for first, last and security deposit, application fee, pet fees if you have pets, parking fees, renter's insurance. Will your commute require tolls? Will you have or need a roommate? What is the rent like in the area you are looking at? Employment - obviously it's easier to move if you already secured a job there. Give yourself enough time to get the move done before you start work. Remember, too, that if you start at the beginning of a pay period, it will be two weeks before your first paycheck. If during a pay period, your first check will be smaller. Utilities - power, water, gas, garbage, cable, internet (some of these may require start-up or installation fees, some may be already included in the rent, but prepare for it anyway). Banking - is your bank local only or is it a large bank that has branches in the new city? May need to establish accounts in the new city if your current bank is, say, a local credit union. Depending upon the cost of rent in that city, getting moved and established could easily run to the $5,000 range, so you might want to target having that much available for your move. These are the ideas that come from the top of my head. If I think of more I will add more, and of course other EC members will probably think of things I haven't yet.
Yea I figured 5 to 7000 would probably be a good goal to reach before going for it. And I'll most likely be doing it alone without help from friends. The only ppl I'm going to tell is family. And I'm not going to take a whole lot of stuff. Just what I can fit on a truck and trailer. The rest will be stored at home or in storage. I just wanna get out of my little hillbilly piece of shit town so bad. My whole life has been a lie and I'm ready to live! Oh and I'm a mechanic by trade.
I've moved before, and I would definitely say you need more than $5000--especially if you move without having a job already lined up. If you're wanting to move to a more LGBT-populated area in the US, you're almost certainly talking about a major city. And major cities here are expensive as crap. Your rent alone could be over $1000/month, especially depending on what city we're talking about. Then you have to pay for transportation in one way or another. That will suck $5000 up fast. I also moved and thought I had figured out how much money I needed to make per month in order to be okay financially. Dude, I got to that city and could find jobs, but not jobs that paid me enough money. I took one job that I thought would get me close enough, and so much of my paycheck got sucked up in taxes (this was a high-tax state), plus it was an hourly wage job and they took 30 minutes out of my paychecks for lunch breaks--even though most of my shifts were overnight. I'd never had a job do that without my hours making up for it with another 30 minutes being part of the shift, i.e. working 7:30am-4pm, for example, so that you still get paid for 8 hours. And then I ended up losing that job two months later and couldn't get another one. I started with $5000, and when I got down to $1000 left I had to move back home. So, you need extra money to account for stuff that can go wrong or not according to plan. If I ever moved again, I'd ideally want $10000 saved, unless maybe if I had a job lined up that was going to pay really, really well.
Yea that's a good idea. I've looked a little bit at rental places were I plan to go and they range from 600 to as much as you wanna spend. I def. Plan on having a job lined up before I head there. And I hope to get an apartment or house that will allow room mate so we can split cost. And I'm hoping I can find a place that's a short drive to the city but not in it so rent isn't as much. I also have car and insurance payments to worry about too.
The nice thing about being in a trade job, is they are always understaffed. And mechanics tend to make pretty solid wages anywhere. Really kind of depends on how much stuff you need to take with you vs how much you own. We took a bed and my tools the first trip... and all the wife's freaking plants. Then made a second trip with everything else crammed in a U-haul. In any of the interviews, you might as if they have a program to help partly fund your move. Depending on your certifications and experience, a large shop or dealer might throw you some cash to move.
Yea I'll ask but I'll be applying at production facilities or resorts because my experience is on the maintenance side of mechanic work. I'm a maintenance man at a factory.
I think it's good to be prepared as long as you don't let the preparation allow you to continually postpone what you want until it's too late. I think there's something to be said for striking out for what you want and having faith that you'll make it work. My husband moved to Chicago with practically no money and just the stuff he could fit in his crappy car... because, well, it was time. It was time for the next stage of his life and so he went for it. Was it foolhardy? Maybe a little. Am I glad he did it? Hell yeah. Do I respect the hell out of people who know what they want and go for it? Yes, I do. It seems like people these days are so willing to take silly risks and yet so unwilling to take risks for things that actually matter. Most of the things that are worth going for aren't sure things--that's why not everyone gets them.
