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Why is this new city going to be so much better than your current city? I wouldn't mind taking a little bit of a pay cut to move to my dream city, but the short sale would be a huge deterrent for me. Why did you buy a house at all if you hate the city you're in and want to move so badly?
I would really think about why the new city is going to make your quality of life so much better. Do you have friends and family there? Have you visited it extensively to know it's a good fit for you? Even if you have visited a lot, nothing is really the same as living there until you really do.
I HATED the area I grew up in. I was convinced it was the most terrible place anyone could possibly live. It was too small and too far away from the places I wanted to be, so I moved to a bigger city halfway across the country. I enjoyed it there, but 2 1/2 years later I moved back. I was sick of crowds and traffic and high costs of living and I suddenly appreciated all those things I thought I hated. My point is you are really going to have to sacrifice a lot to move right now. Are you sure it will be worth it? Maybe it will be. Only you can answer that. Maybe you can save, pay down your house, and a better job will come along later?
No one can weight all the options from your view. The short sale tho would be the major consideration to me ;more than losing salary I could make up later.
If you're in a market with limited opportunity, rent your house. Make the move.
However, I would do a salary comparison on what your current salary buys versus the new geographic market, because there are wide disparities. If, for example, you took a pay cut to move from California or New York to North Carolina, your lifestyle would likely actually improve. If on the other hand, you moved from North Carolina to either of those two states, it would be a very rude shock at how little your salary would buy you.
I think people generally overrate the differences between cities. The human experience is more universal than not.
I think there are HUGE differences between cities, not just circumstantial ones. But I do agree that the human condition/experience is more or less the same everywhere. I would certainly move and take a pay cut if:
1- I could afford the pay cut
2- I knew my marketability would be improved
3- I knew my new location would bring more hapiness
I think there are HUGE differences between cities, not just circumstantial ones. But I do agree that the human condition/experience is more or less the same everywhere. I would certainly move and take a pay cut if:
1- I could afford the pay cut
2- I knew my marketability would be improved
3- I knew my new location would bring more hapiness
Usually a move can really help change your life.
It really depends on the circumstances. But I think, as I believe someone said earlier, the differences are possibly more psychological than real. It would be folly to drop thousands of dollars on a move to a city with a huge pay cut if you could've just found a better circle of friends in the original city and been just as happy. hard to say about the OP without knowing the specifics.
^ Move to Camden, NJ then and tell me about the friends you make there!
Differences between cities: culture (politics, education, etc), work (opportunities, pay, taxes etc), Location (foliage/greenery, absence of graffiti, number of buildings, number of trees, distance from the ocean/mountains, distance from major centers of commerce, cost of living. The list for me, goes on and on endlessly.
I do see your major point though, its a matter of risk evaluation.
I think there are HUGE differences between cities, not just circumstantial ones. But I do agree that the human condition/experience is more or less the same everywhere. I would certainly move and take a pay cut if:
1- I could afford the pay cut
2- I knew my marketability would be improved
3- I knew my new location would bring more hapiness
Usually a move can really help change your life.
This.
Having lived in a plethora of cities / states / countries, I will defend this until I'm blue in the face. Where you live and who you're with has a massive impact on your life.
The "right" city [for you] makes a hell of a difference.
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