Are my plans to move realistic? (Anchorage, Juneau and: apartments, rent, crime)

[shatteredzman]

So I've been thinking recently...I dont have more then $1000 to my name and I have just finished my second semester of college. My plan is to move to alaska after I finish my 2 year degree and get my 4/5/6 year degree. I've been thinking about what it will cost, the cost of college, the cost to move, the cost of food, the cost of rent, it all seems almost impossible to overcome. I'm hoping that by the time I finish my 2 year degree I will have saved up $10,000.

I currently live in oklahoma so its a rather long drive to alaska, I dont own much other then my car, my computer, and a few other things. I plan on moving with my wife who is in the same situation. She is in college and wants to move too. We both want to move to anchorage but we are worried about the cost of the move and living once we get there. I've been considering getting a some sort of loan before I move and once I get to anchorage I can get settled in and get a job and become a resident so I dont have to pay non resident college fees.

So I guess what I need is a reality check.

[Barkingowl]

Well with the price of gas these days I think a good chunk of your savings is going to get eaten up on your trip up. Have you priced apartments yet?

[shatteredzman]

From what I've seen an apartment will run me about $600-$1000 in rent.

[arctichomesteader]

Anchorage tends to be pretty expensive, like most other big cities. Are you set on Anchorage and the surrounding area? Just curious why you chose Anchorage. And what are you in college for, is it something that will be useful/in demand?

[shatteredzman]

The reason I want to go to anchorage is because the university of alaska has 3 locations, Anchorage, Juneau, and Fairbanks, and Juneau and Fairbanks arent very appealing to me. The field I will be going into is Information systems, I will basically administer networks or anything involving computer networks really.

[stiffnecked]

I moved from Oklahoma to Alaska over 27 years ago. We visit often as 2 of our little snots are in school at OU. $10K will be plenty of money. If it's just you and your wife I'm sure you can be more than flexible. Gas for the trip up won't cost you 10K. You'll have plenty left for living expenses.

Anchorage would be a good choice but you might also want to look at UAF in Fairbanks.
Anything you can do to get out of Okrahoma will be good. Even though they passed some of the nations toughest immigration laws the illegals are still flocking to your state.
Get out while you can.

[shatteredzman]

Yeah I want to move asap, less then a mile away theres a bunch of shopping centers and no one can speak english and all the signs are in spanish. I wouldnt mind people moving from mexico but they also bring crime with them and things have just gone downhill.

I'm not worried about the cost to get there, I just dont want to end up homeless once I get there.

Fairbanks just doesnt appeal to me very much, it seems so boring compared to anchorage.

[Rance]

4-5-6 years sounds like a really long time to just be a network administrator. Coming from Oklahoma...I'd think you'd be more into petroleum engneering or something usefull! And would get you a nice paying job in Ak. Is there really that much demeand for computer network admins?

[Glitch]

I think your plans sound realistic. Figure the drive will cost you between $2,000 and $2,500, depending on whether you camp out most of the trip or stay in motels. Rents are a little higher than $600/month unless you want to live in a real dive. Figure at least $750/month. Have your first and last month's rent ready before you move in, and expect a security deposit equal to one month's rent. You may be fortunate to get a job when you first arrive, or it may take you a month or two. I think $10,000 is very reasonable for two people.

[shatteredzman]

Originally Posted by Rance

4-5-6 years sounds like a really long time to just be a network administrator. Coming from Oklahoma...I'd think you'd be more into petroleum engneering or something usefull! And would get you a nice paying job in Ak. Is there really that much demeand for computer network admins?

4+ years may be more then I need, I will decide if thats true by the time I get my 2 year degree. From what I can see the first 2 years goes over most of the computer aspects of the course, and the last 2 years go over the management aspects. I will probably have to take some more classes in anchorage to be up-to-par with a 2 year degree in anchorage.
I understand oil is a big industry in Alaska but I really dont have much interest in the field. There will always be a need for computers and every office building you see in Anchorage is almost guaranteed to have at least one network. Maybe I can get some computer related job working for an oil company, I know they use a lot of computers in their equipement. One thing is for sure, computers will never go away so I will always have a job market. From what I've seen from looking at websites anchorage actually has a bigger job market for computer related jobs then where I currently live.

Originally Posted by Glitch

I think your plans sound realistic. Figure the drive will cost you between $2,000 and $2,500, depending on whether you camp out most of the trip or stay in motels. Rents are a little higher than $600/month unless you want to live in a real dive. Figure at least $750/month. Have your first and last month's rent ready before you move in, and expect a security deposit equal to one month's rent. You may be fortunate to get a job when you first arrive, or it may take you a month or two. I think $10,000 is very reasonable for two people.

I dont plan on staying in a ghetto but I dont want to get something extravagent but its good to know rent is not a great deal higher. I am really going to try to secure a job before I move but if I just cant do that I'll settle for looking for a job when I arrive.

I appreciate the comments, they really help for planning my move.