starting over from scratch (Grand Rapids: rental, dorm, job market)

[mattb82]

Without getting into detail about the bad choices I have made to get me in the position I am in I will just say this.... I currently live in Livingston county. About 2.5 hours SE of GR. I am 33 years old. I lost my drivers license and vehicle. There is no public transportation around so I need to relocate to a larger city with public transit. I simply cannot survive without transit or a vehicle as everything is spread out here. I currently stay with my parents and have no way of getting around and live miles from any type of store or job.

I have two choices.... Stay at my parents and be a loser OR do whatever I have to do to make it on my own. What I will be doing is actually a second attempt as I tried this in January and gave up after a week. I decided to go stay at the Mel trotter mission, find ANY job (even fast food) save a cpl checks and rent a room. The first attempt didn't go as planned and I gave up, maybe too easily and am prepared to try again in hopes the shelter will be less crowded and just the fact it won't be freezing outside will be enough for me to endure it until I can get on my feet. The shelter last January was HORRIBLE. Even worse than I thought. The smell in the men's dorm was beyond anything else I've ever experienced. And without going into all the details ill just say its not a nice place.

I really dont have many options. Being stuck where i am in the middle of nowhere and doing nothing all day has left me feeling very depressed and determined to try again and stick it out SO... I dont have a particular question but am looking for any advice people from GR may have as i was only there a week and dont know much about it. My goal is to obtain employment, rent a room, and be self sufficient. Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated.

[mattb82]

I understand this may seem drastic to some but I hate my life and situation as it is now and am prepared to do anything it takes to start my life completely over in a new city and build a life that's worth living. If I can do it it would be awesome. I am completely unhappy to put it nicely and am willing to take drastic measures. The key would be finding work quickley. That's what I need help/advice on.

[chh]

You'll have trouble finding a place to rent. GR metro has the lowest rental vacancy rate of any metro its size. When you find a place to rent though, you won't have much trouble finding a job, the economy is booming.

[HannahTravels]

If you're not opposed to roommates I would suggest looking for a single room to rent. That's going to be your cheapest housing option, aside from going back to a shelter. YMCA's used to rent rooms for relatively cheap too, I don't know if they still do, but you could try calling around to a few of them. Grand Rapids has a booming job market right now and you shouldn't have trouble finding something to do. It might not be an ideal job, but there are always places eager to hire. Get your resume in order and make sure you have an interview outfit.

Grand Rapids Homeless Shelters and Services - Grand Rapids MI Homeless Shelters - Grand Rapids Michigan Homeless Shelters

[mattb82]

My plan is to rent a room. There are plenty on Craigslist. Just need a job first.