Better to Move or Stay Put (jobs, furniture, cheaper, very expensive)

[Carrie0930]

I have been going back and forth over this for the past few years and it's coming up to that I'll have to decide something in the next year or two.

I currently live south of Boston, MA with my FI in a small 1br/1ba 600ish sq ft apt. We currently pay $1025 for rent, which is quite reasonable for this area the rent in our apartment is pretty stable.

We've talked on and off about moving the past couple of years. Ideally someplace between here and NC appeals to me. I cannot see living further than that. This is mainly due to two factors: I really dislike long, cold winters and the housing here is currently out of our reach.

That being said, we both have OK jobs here and we are both from the same town here and our families are all here. I'm not so sure how I feel being up to 12 hours away from my entire family, as I've never lived far from home outside of a 4 month stay in Australia, which admittedly you do get used to.

Obviously, I know that you need to have a job before you even consider moving, but I don't want to look into that if I'm not sure that moving is for me. Anyways, the situation right now is we are getting married next summer and living in this tiny apartment has worn on me over the past several years. However, we cannot move to a nicer apartment because rent is extremely expensive in this area now and it would cost a lot more money each month for rent. We could probably afford a 20% down payment on a house in the range of $150k but not much more than that, which severely limits us in this area. Also, I'd really like to start a family in the next two or three years, and we obviously cannot do that in a tiny one bedroom apartment.

Thoughts? Should I just tough it out here? Look for a cheaper place to live that's not too far away? Part of me is worried that I'll just regret not trying someplace new years down the road. Another part of me worries that if I move I'll be miserable and want to move home.

[bouncethelight]

If you really love the town you live in, and your entire family is there, but you can't afford a bigger apartment, then I would get new smaller furniture!

Seriously, I know it sounds crazy, but if you replace your biggest pieces of furniture with smaller pieces, it will make your space feel larger. Then declutter everywhere - and once again, your space will feel larger. Then check out Apartment Therapy for ideas on how to make the most of the room you do have.

If you can tough it out for a couple of years, and your financial situation improves, you may be able to afford a home in the area you love...

[Funny how?]

Greenville, South Carolina. Or, Asheville, North Carolina. There ya go! Yer welcome!!

[blondiel]

If you want to move, do so. If you become miserable and want to move back home, do that too. You'll never know until you try.

[Butterfly4u]

Carrie,
If you move to a cheaper part of the country and rent a bigger place than you have there, what is the worse that is going to happen?
You may miss your family so bad that you have to move back to the town that you are in now, and live in a small apartment again and be near your family.
OK. If that is the worse that is going to happen, then go ahead and move.
Just rent in your new state, try it for a couple years, give it a chance,
you are young, you only live once, right?
You will never know til you at least try it.

[jasper12]

Moving is too costly to just do on a whim. Unless there is a compelling reason to move, I would not do it.

[loveautumn]

I would get married first, then wait a bit because getting married and moving in the same year might be too much. Sounds like you both are close to your families and I have seen only too often that people from the NE that are very close to familyhave a hard time adjusting. Especially when grandchildren come along, etc.

Have you tried to get better paying jobs? Hopefully at your age you haven't max'd out on your payscale. I know Boston is a very expensive area, otherwise I would live there myself. It is a very tough choice. You probably would need to go to NC because anything short of that would still be in expensive states to live. I would suggest visiting Raleigh or Charlotte where the jobs are, although I know NC has been hit pretty hard in this recession too. Jobs arent't as easy to come by as they used to be.

It used to be alot easier for anybody to just pick up and move but things have changed, the economy has changed, America has changed...and it's not so easy to recover anymore from a bad move. Make a pro's and con's list (after your visit) and see how it comes out.