How much $$$ would I need to save to move to Chicago.. (Mark: apartment, luxury) - Illinois (IL) - Page 4 - City-Data Forum

cxdurden · 04-01-2009, 02:54 PM

Ramen Noodles!?!?!?!? PUHLEEZ! That's too extreme and non-nutritional. You can more than definitely eat well for $200 a month if you budget everything right! Oatmeal w/Peanut Butter for Breakfast, Pasta w/ Chicken Breast for Lunch, Protein Smoothie after gym, Egg Whites and Turkey Bacon for Dinner and another protein shake for bedtime...$40 for 2-3 days of crackers and ramen noodles - those must be wholegrain gourmet ramen noodles made by paula dean!?!

eevee · 04-01-2009, 03:37 PM

when I first moved to Chicago from Boston, I had MUCH less money saved up, I'd say around $2.5-3K. granted, I was renting a room and saving up a 6 month reserve. I was also lucky enough to find a job w/in 4 weeks. I'd say I spent just around $900 for first month's + security deposit for my room (in a not so nice location, but utilities were included), around $400 for a cheap bed, and bought some cheap supplies from Walmart. since you're looking to move into your own place, you'll need to budget a lot more for furniture. last summer, moving into my place, I spent close to $3K on furniture and house stuff (and most of the furniture came "used" from a discount store and from thrift stores). there's also a utility deposit to worry about in some cases, especially if your credit is so-so. unless you bring kitchen stuff w/ you or head out to Target/Walmart that first day, plan on eating out for a bit (last thing you'll want to do after moving cross country and unpacking is to cook!). if you cook a lot, you may want to do a massive shopping place at Costco's or Sam's Club to get major staples cheap

I think your budget is good, especially if you'd be willing to be flexible w/ jobs (I just went w/ the first retail job I could get, but since you have a degree, you'll likely want something better). I think other than rent deposits, your biggest expense w/ be furniture and house stuff, but luckily, you don't need to buy all that at once. don't forget to factor in about $10 for every $100 you spend on some items due to taxes

ChicagoJack · 04-01-2009, 05:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cxdurden

Well - I will be bringing a car, but from what I've noticed with Chicago is that its not like NYC where u absolutely need to ride the train - however, the new parking meters kind of force you to do such....Utilities - I am hoping I can get internet DSL 6.0 for about $50 and spend no more than $60 on electricity. I know a lot of Chicago apts include gas and water in the rent....

If you are bringing a car and want to live along the lakeshore in places such as Rogers Park or Edgewater, you will have to rent a parking space. An outdoor one can be had for about $70 or so and a covered one for more. Parking is hard to come by there and if you do find on street parking, you will have to get up and move your car to the other side of the street at 6:00 AM.
As for DSL, you can probably do like me and just "hitch" a ride on somebody else's unsecured wireless. I have about 4 of them that I can pick from and if you live along the lake then you will not have any problem finding a free connection.

grapico · 04-01-2009, 09:03 PM

12K? geez... no way... i dunno how u live...

I moved there on a few hundred and staying with a friend after college in FLORIDA... best way to get a job is just to go... (sucks right now though, but... usually)
I had a temp job w/in a few days and a full time salaried job in bout 3 weeks. I got all my furniture free off craigslist, I brought my laptop and some clothes.

crap i've lived for a year straight currently on less than 10k. walk, ride a bike, stop eating out and buying stuff... u can hang in there. I'm sure u have a bunch of stuff u probably don't need and never use.

I never had a problem finding work in Chicago, I had to turn down work all the time from recruiters... likewise here in Florida for 5 months and haven't found NADA, leaving in less than 3 months, outtaaa here.

Think you need to just get out of Florida... it isn't so bad elsewhere... Florida for many professions is quite devastated right now and has never been a high paying or diversified economic state. For instance same job had here paid bout twice as much in Chicago.

cxdurden · 04-02-2009, 08:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by grapico

12K? geez... no way... i dunno how u live...

I moved there on a few hundred and staying with a friend after college in FLORIDA... best way to get a job is just to go... (sucks right now though, but... usually)
I had a temp job w/in a few days and a full time salaried job in bout 3 weeks. I got all my furniture free off craigslist, I brought my laptop and some clothes.

crap i've lived for a year straight currently on less than 10k. walk, ride a bike, stop eating out and buying stuff... u can hang in there. I'm sure u have a bunch of stuff u probably don't need and never use.

I never had a problem finding work in Chicago, I had to turn down work all the time from recruiters... likewise here in Florida for 5 months and haven't found NADA, leaving in less than 3 months, outtaaa here.

Think you need to just get out of Florida... it isn't so bad elsewhere... Florida for many professions is quite devastated right now and has never been a high paying or diversified economic state. For instance same job had here paid bout twice as much in Chicago.

Trust me - I totally agree. My parents are older -- 50+ years old and can't vagabond for a couple of months, i.e. do not eat out, sleep on an air mattress or futon, etc. They need a certain set of luxuries that they are used to. They would never dare take public transportation and would gladly spend the $10-$20 to park in the Loop area.

I just want to be safe...Plus, my older cousin thinks I should just @ my current job and keep flying back and forth between MIA and Chicago until I find something which I told her is ridicolous..But then again, getting advice from people whom are pretty much set in their ways is like asking a turtle how to compete in a triathalon.

grapico · 04-02-2009, 05:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cxdurden

Trust me - I totally agree. My parents are older -- 50+ years old and can't vagabond for a couple of months, i.e. do not eat out, sleep on an air mattress or futon, etc. They need a certain set of luxuries that they are used to. They would never dare take public transportation and would gladly spend the $10-$20 to park in the Loop area.

I just want to be safe...Plus, my older cousin thinks I should just @ my current job and keep flying back and forth between MIA and Chicago until I find something which I told her is ridicolous..But then again, getting advice from people whom are pretty much set in their ways is like asking a turtle how to compete in a triathalon.

Yeah I would get enough for a few months rent and head out just to be safe. get a cheap roommate ad off craigslist for like 400 a month. I'm sure you can find *something* to get you by if you want to be there...seriously, just go, better job market than Florida for sure... so where is the loss?

cxdurden · 04-03-2009, 09:25 AM

Yeah - that's why I want to save up like $10-$12k...lol

cxdurden · 04-03-2009, 09:29 AM

My plan is to get a studio in the ballpark figure of about $490-$600 based off of what I see on the reader and then with internet, water, gas, electricity -- that can be an additional $200 -- I am going to say that's about $800 in rent/utilities...Then I factor in about $200 on food/groceries...I say this because I am on a strict diet and do not tend to deviate from it. Then another $200 for gas/EL...I am trying to avoid paying for parking by taking the train into the loop, etc...I think in total -- sticking to a budget of no more than $1700 multiplied by 6 months of living expenses is perfecto. That's about $10.2k -- I will probably have like $12k by the end of August...

cxdurden · 04-03-2009, 09:33 AM

I just wish I can have a job lined up! I wish I can work with some Chicago Sales Recruiters...

grapico · 04-04-2009, 09:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cxdurden

My plan is to get a studio in the ballpark figure of about $490-$600 based off of what I see on the reader and then with internet, water, gas, electricity -- that can be an additional $200 -- I am going to say that's about $800 in rent/utilities...Then I factor in about $200 on food/groceries...I say this because I am on a strict diet and do not tend to deviate from it. Then another $200 for gas/EL...I am trying to avoid paying for parking by taking the train into the loop, etc...I think in total -- sticking to a budget of no more than $1700 multiplied by 6 months of living expenses is perfecto. That's about $10.2k -- I will probably have like $12k by the end of August...

Seems like a little overestimate on utilities ... Florida is quite a bit more expensive. You can get a monthly pass for around 75 and ride unlimited. I guess it could be good to overestimate just in case, but, I do think you are overestimating on some of those things. Depending on what you eat, food could be cheaper in Chicago as well. I eat primarily vegetarian and that was definitely the case for me b/c you can get bulk staples very cheap at the ethnic stores there.