Young single mother relocating (Baltimore, Ellicott City: section 8, apartments, rent)

[kinkytoes]

Originally Posted by VAVA804

Hi,
I'm a 24 year old single mother of a 2 year old girl and full time college student. I will be graduating in a little over a year. I've been living in Richmond Virginia all my life and want to move. I would love a big metro city but have concerns about being single with a small child. So... I need some place with great schools, that's safe, with good public transportation, decent sized apartments, close to shopping and muesums, etc. I'm considering Chicago and San Antonio but tell me about some other places. I will receiving a degree in business management and marketing and I'm a licensed esthetician. Iwas told Baltimore has some great areas and PG County.

Hi,

Your daughter is 2 years old and she’s already in college!

LOL Just kidding. In my experience, the free public schools in most parts of Baltimore are terrible. Not only is the education below par, but your kid will be going to school with children you may not want your kid to associate with. Your kid will learn improper language, be violated physically and possibly sexually by other students. This stuff to me is almost worse than the inadequate education. If you want to send your child to a decent school in Baltimore you may have to send your child to a private school. Many of our private schools are fairly expensive.

There are other areas which have better public schools such as Baltimore County, Ellicott City etc. Your child will be safe and can have a school in a safe diverse environment. Public transportation can be okay depending on where you live, but you should plan on getting a reliable car in case you have a child-related emergency.

I would recommend looking for a job first and then deciding where to move. My unsolicited advice is that wherever you move in America, how much money you make and/or have will determine your experience. If you have just graduated from school and don’t have a job or savings and a child to support, you may be better off staying where you are for a while and saving enough money to make sure you can move to a nice place. I suggest you:

1. Travel to the new area and stay for a few days so you can see what’ it’s really like.

2. Get a job in your new area, because you should have a good job before you move.

3. Find a good school for your kid. In MD the public schools in inexpensive areas are terrible. Let me repeat Terrible. You have to pay for private school or have the time and money to supplement the education for your child. The areas with good public schools are expensive to live in, so you have to have a good job first. Are things different in Richmond?

The things you want for your child can be gotten as long as you can afford them. I haven’t been anywhere in the USA where this is not the case. So if you’re a single mom and a recently graduated student, you may need to think twice before moving. I am assuming you don’t have a lot of money. Feel free to put me in my place if I am incorrect. I am also assuming that you may get an administrative assistant job, or may do hair or waxing as a job. So you may make in the mid 20’s – 30’s as a salary.

In Baltimore and the surrounding areas, this means you can afford a monthly rent of about $750. This may get you a 1 BR in a nice area, OR a 2BR or even a whole house in a dangerous, dirty and crime-infested area.

There is also a serious backlog for section-8 apartments, so you may not even be able to get a subsidized apartment in a better area. And to be honest, the areas where landlords resort to section 8 in Baltimore do not have good schools or the other amenities either. I also know this from personal experience.

Good Luck

[herenia]

I think the cost of living in philly is low but i don't know about philly's public school system - sorry i went to a prep school in minneapolis. Oh, and when i say the cost of living is pretty cheap in philly, this is coming from a single female with no kids.
how much do you want to spend on rent per month? Will you have a car? have you factored in the cost of insurance if you move to a city from baltimore? You also said you have a year or so to graduate. If you are going to move before you graduate, it may not be the best thing because you'll have to pay out of state college tuition unless you got to a private school where tuition is the same for everyone.
From what i've seen so far in philly, it's cheaper than baltimore and it isn't as bad if you stay clear of certain areas. it isn't a block by block thing here where one block is good and the next, sketchy. But then again i don't know about the school system here. Wait, i did rotation at a school in southwest baltimore and i thought it was ok. No, i wasn't teaching. I just did some health promotion stuff with little children.

Texas is fairly cheap, considering the fact that you don't have to pay state income tax. However, i've heard they either get you in property taxes but i still think parts of texas is inexpensive.

I realized you mentioned PG county. In my search for housing in baltimore, i have been told it's a very good area. The only thing for me is i love the city.
Good luck in whatever choice you make.

[baltimore's best]

"I was told Baltimore has some great areas and PG County."

Yipes! Who is giving you advice?

[BlackDoc]

Hi, in terms of your search criteria (big metro city, great schools, safe, etc), I think you may have to prioritize. I've lived in NY, Chicago, DC, and now Baltimore. Big metro cities are expensive, and as a college student, you may be forced to live in less safe areas in order to make ends meet. That means lesser quality schools, fewer amenities. If you are willing to accept medium-sized metro areas, you may have better luck. I'm not so sure Richmond wouldn't fall in that category, but it sounds like you're looking for change. How about Charlotte or Atlanta? Midwest--Indianapolis, Kansas City, Minneapolis? I've never been to San Antonio, but I hear Austin is hot right now. Texas definitely has a lower cost of living. I even think DC may be easier than Baltimore since you can live a little further out in the burbs and still have access to public transportation. Also, I'm not sure if you have family in Richmond, but with a young child, proximity to family may also be a concern. I think everyone should get a chance to see the world and live in a different place than they were born for personal growth, I just think some items on your wish list may be mutually exclusive. Good Luck!

[Shadozer]

i can tell you from personal experience pg county schools are horrible! i've never been to baltimore schools but i live there and from the looks of them they seem a little broke down. i would not suggest either places for safety or schools. you'll find the best schools in montgomery co........but it's soooooooooo expensive to live there. but being a licensed esthetician you should find many great jobs there. it is close enough to dc and there is plenty of public transportation there, plus shopping and some very nice apartments. but really if you want my oppinion maryland is overrated and overpriced, i would look elsewhere! good luck to you and your daughter!