Relocation (jobs, expensive, transport, schools)

[bprettylady]

HELLO, I'M NEW TO THIS AND DESPERATELY NEED SOME ADVICE.

I'm a single mother of a nine year old boy. I currently live in the south suburb's of Chicago, IL. I have been here for about eight years and I need to move as soon as possible. I understand that I have to save money and visit the city in question. I'm not looking to move until maybe May of next year, I like to plan ahead.
Basically, I'm looking to move because the crime here is getting worse by the hour, I know that were every you go its going to be some violence, but I cant raise my son here.
I'm looking for a nice city were the crime rate is less then average, my son loves the outdoors, scenery is a big part of my move because it's not nature here. Being a single mother is sometime financially hard. A place were the cost of living is low, is a must. If they tend to single parents that would be awesome as well.

So my list consist of as follows:

great schools
nature is prominent
WE LOVE ALL TYPES OF MUSIC
nice weather mostly all year round
LOW COST OF LIVING
lots of kid adventures
Good jobs in sales/sectary
community welcome new families with open arms
and lastly were your nationally doesn't paint a picture of who you are (if you know what I mean by that!!).
Thanks in advance

[kab0906]

What sort of work do you do?

What is your expected income and expenses?

[RVcook]

My heart goes out to you and commend your courage as a single mother to give your son a better life.

My advice would be to make a plan which starts with assessing your ability to acquire employment regardless of where you want to relocate. Next, you should begin to investigate areas that fit your criteria by doing research on the web.

You need to look at the unemployment rate, education of the population, school rating, religious affiliations, and as much as we all would like to believe that the city we would inevitably choose would accept us with a welcoming smile, finding a location that supports your ethnic background will feel much better than choosing an area that is not as diverse.

And while you're doing that, you should also evaluate your current financial situation. It is expensive to move and you will not only need money to either move yourself or hire people to do it, you may have to store your belongings temporarily. Additionally, you may have to find temporary living quarters, eat food out and pay for gas and/or transportation to get around in a new locale. So with all this in mind, you will need to have a stash of at least 3 months worth of income set aside before you decide to move.

Another way to approach this would be to connect with family or friends who may live elsewhere and see what opportunities are available in their area. Heck...they may even be amiable to letting you stay there until you get on your feet. Or, if you are connected to a church right now, you might want to see if they offer an outreach service with other affiliated churches throughout the country that could help you with your relocation.

I am sure that all of this seems insurmountable, but your choices are basically (1) move -OR- (2) don't. If you are determined to make the move in spite of the obstacles, then the sooner you begin to implement a solid plan, the sooner you will be able to execute it. Lao-tzu is famous for saying "A journey of a 1000 miles, begins with a single step." No truer words have ever been spoken. Take the first step. You have to believe in yourself.

I wish you the very best of luck.

RVcook

[Restrain]

Look at Texas as DFW is a top job creator, low cot of living compared to Northeast, CA. It gets hot but winters are very mild compared to IL. DFW is very diverse and accepting. Don't accept stereotypes spouted by NE media.

[DaniellaG]

I was going to suggest North Carolina. When I visited because I was thinking of moving it seemed like a family friendly, safe, affordable place to live. You have a lot of options from small to larger cities. The weather is considerate moderate though the summers can get humid and hot. You do have nice fall/spring and just a small amount of winter weather.
Do you have any family or friends in a state that could be a possibility? I ask cause knowing someone could help you get familiar and also give you support with the move.

[breakingbad]

Houston, TX. Houston gets a bad rap for crime but it is such a huge city you can find work anywhere. Cost of living is low...there is so much to do and schools are great. The area is very culturally diverse. I am a single mom of a seven year old and if my heart weren't set on moving back to the DC area I would move to Houston in a minute.
If you go to church check out Fellowship of The Woodlands (Pastor Kerry Shook) for support...it is a megachurch with many resources and ministries. There is Joel Osteen's church too and they surely have ministries to help single moms. They aren't the kind of churches that expect anything in return either.
Good luck and keep us posted!

[lae60]

You may also want to look for such things as a Boys and Girls Club. Where I currently live there is a club where you can drop your kids off at 6:30 am, the school bus picks up the kids at the club and returns them after school and the Club has activities until 6:30 pm. During the school year there is no cost and they feed the kids breakfast and snacks. During the Summer it costs $10 a day and the kids need to bring a lunch: the breakfast and snacks are still provided by the club.

This helps a lot with child care costs.

And I am not recommending where I live as its high cost of living, and jobs are difficult for what you are looking for.