Husband is interviewing at PSU (Portland: mattress, home, wedding)

[gosling357]

Thank you! I can hardly believe it, most people on this thread had me thinking that unemployment was sky high in Portland and jobs would be really hard to find, and they would never pay for relocation or allow us to negotiate anything. I was also worried about his salary, but considering how much of our health insurance they'll be covering, it practically breaks even with what I was making on the east coast. With both of our jobs and the low cost of housing and transportation, we'll be better set financially in Oregon than we have ever been in Maryland or Delaware.

[Steve Pickering]

Originally Posted by gosling357

Thank you! I can hardly believe it, most people on this thread had me thinking that unemployment was sky high in Portland and jobs would be really hard to find, and they would never pay for relocation or allow us to negotiate anything. I was also worried about his salary, but considering how much of our health insurance they'll be covering, it practically breaks even with what I was making on the east coast. With both of our jobs and the low cost of housing and transportation, we'll be better set financially in Oregon than we have ever been in Maryland or Delaware.

That should not be a surprise. You may find the right coast more degenerate, but the cost of living is realistic. Those left coasters are out of their minds to pay what they pay, or live that crowded. Of course as you look south (Right coast here, left coast there) it gets just as bad and for the same reasons.

[sezzam]

Originally Posted by gosling357

Just wanted to update everybody: Not only did my husband get the job, he got the top end of the pay scale and paid relocation expenses. I also found a great job at Impact NW so we'll each have roughly the same income. I am over the moon! Now the packing begins, and contacting overbooked moving companies...thankfully they have a relocation service that will help us find a starter rental before we buy. Oh happy day...

Excellent progress. Congrats and good luck.

[christiner81]

glad to hear it's all coming together!

[Minervah]

Wow! It's an amazing story. Good luck to you in your new home.

[Nell Plotts]

IMHO you should only bring clothing, family heirlooms and wedding gifts. All the rest isn't likely worth the cost of transport. Keep your move simple. Portland has an active re-sale market and IKEA. The stuff you have now may not look great in your new home.

Oh, the things you bring in your car should all fit in the trunk. All across the country meth-heads steal from cars overnight.

[Leisesturm]

I don't know about anyone else but our family heirlooms, clothing, and nothing else filled a 16' Penske truck. I'm not kidding. No furniture, no books, no records, everything sold or given away. I am exagerrating slightly, but, I just find it hard to imagine that two people will fit everything important to them in the trunk of a modern automobile for a cross-country move.

H

[Minervah]

Having made a cross country move from Chicago to Portland, I can suggest that it is a very individual undertaking. What works for some people will not work for others. It will depend upon how many family members, what they have, what their items are worth, what is most important to them and what is not. There are more things to be considered and they will come up as plans are being made.

For some, selling everything and beginning anew works, for others just the opposite. I don't think there are many places of destination that don't have good stores, retail or wholesale or thrift shops or want adds etc where replacement items can't be found but on the other hand, bringing along these items can save time and hassle of looking for them.

So it's really a matter of what is going to suit the individual who is doing the moving the best. I had all kinds of suggestions and I found that those who had actually experienced a cross country move gave the best advice. I listened to those people, made myself lists and ultimately incorporated the ideas as to which worked best for me.

So my few words of advice to the OP is take in all ideas and then work out whatever best works for you.

[Leisesturm]

A reputable moving company will take your life savings on a cross country move. North American Rockwell, Mayflower... they won't rip you off... they don't have to... 5 grand, maybe more just to move a 2 bedroom and they're pretty happy. The smaller companies will offer you a much lower price but they may play games and they don't play nice and they are very big men and they have your stuff. I don't like moving companies.

I swear by Penske and will never use U-Haul again. Driving a Penske truck cross-country is not for everyone. I don't know much about PODS, but if it were my move and I didn't want to drive the truck myself, I would look into them or a competitor.

H

[gosling357]

Wow, you guys really think we should sell all our furniture and bed and everything? We have a Tempurpedic that took 2 years to pay off...and even though our furniture is IKEA, it still cost us a lot to get everything. Plus TV, heirloom trunk and sewing table, dishes from our registry...there is absolutely no way we would sell everything and leave it behind. We would lose out on so much money, and we aren't starting at the greatest point financially. Plus we like this stuff.

We will definitely be using a moving company, since the relocation will be at least partially paid for. We are going to get estimates also for shipping one of our cars and/or having them pack everything as well.