Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
What if my goal is to live in Hawaii? I just am having some trouble picking a major in school.
You push off setting real goals in your life. At a time when you still have choices. You distract yourself with searching answers from locations.
If you don't set goals ASAP (like, Do I want a family? Do I want to make decent money longterm? Do I want to work in a profession I love?) life will take over and you will turn into human driftwood.
If you have 3 roommates, then you have 3 times the problems you would have living by yourself. Some days it might feel like you are having 10 times as many problems! I would suggest moving to Florida, because compared to Hawaii prices it's amazingly affordable. St Pete, where we live, is a very liberal, (in a state of red) exciting city w/ beaches all around it and a thriving downtown. Daytona Beach is even cheaper, but it can be trashy. The job market here is good, and housing is very reasonable for such a beautiful place. It's going up all the time though.
I know that a lot of people think that moving to Hawaii is getting away from a lot of the stress and problems on the mainland, but it's often not that way. It's still the US, sorta, and has all the problems that are everywhere else and some of it's own that are unique to Hawaii. You're very smart to avoid going into dept, especially at such an early age. Here you will be able to afford a place of your own, there is a great bus system, a sizable young population (and a large old one too), and there's plenty of water based and other things to do. There's lots of share rentals from $350 and up if you want to save money. FSU and Eckerd colleges are here too, so plenty of students.
There's few things in life more miserable and stressful than living some place that your budget does not support. Why live marginally and in bad areas if you don't have to? Come to Hawaii when you can afford it, but get to a sunny climate w/ beaches and water ASAP. It's not Hawaii, and much of Florida is not my cup of tea, but this particular city is a real fun place. It won't always be as affordable as it is right now.
If you have 3 roommates, then you have 3 times the problems you would have living by yourself. Some days it might feel like you are having 10 times as many problems! I would suggest moving to Florida, because compared to Hawaii prices it's amazingly affordable. St Pete, where we live, is a very liberal, (in a state of red) exciting city w/ beaches all around it and a thriving downtown. Daytona Beach is even cheaper, but it can be trashy. The job market here is good, and housing is very reasonable for such a beautiful place. It's going up all the time though.
I know that a lot of people think that moving to Hawaii is getting away from a lot of the stress and problems on the mainland, but it's often not that way. It's still the US, sorta, and has all the problems that are everywhere else and some of it's own that are unique to Hawaii. You're very smart to avoid going into dept, especially at such an early age. Here you will be able to afford a place of your own, there is a great bus system, a sizable young population (and a large old one too), and there's plenty of water based and other things to do. There's lots of share rentals from $350 and up if you want to save money. FSU and Eckerd colleges are here too, so plenty of students.
There's few things in life more miserable and stressful than living some place that your budget does not support. Why live marginally and in bad areas if you don't have to? Come to Hawaii when you can afford it, but get to a sunny climate w/ beaches and water ASAP. It's not Hawaii, and much of Florida is not my cup of tea, but this particular city is a real fun place. It won't always be as affordable as it is right now.
This guy knows what's up. FL is almost as far from CO as is HI. You can truly get away from it on the Florida coast. Go there, live cheap, work service, make friends. Hawai'i can come later.
I dont think it's a good idea to move to hawaii without a good plan in place, especially with no good career plan in place. You're going to work sub $10/hour jobs as long as youre here and live like a pauper. Like going to vegas without a gambling budget, it's a good way to end up more broke than you already were. At least in your home state, you still have the support of your family.
I have only one suggestion I'm willing to post....May I suggest in preparation of any move, purchasing gift certificates/gift cards on one or more airlines that service the area airport you are looking to move close to. Most of them do not expire and you'd have a way home if the sh*t hits the fan and you need to leave but don't have the money to do so. I did this and have yet to use them but it's nice to know they are there 'just in case' I ever need them.
Learn a trade, There is a huge shortage of tradesmen in this country, like plumbers. They make good money, you can do it at city colleges, and eventually work for yourself.
What kind of major is "undecided"? Your general naritive sounds like you are trying to run away from something. Moving to a place that has a very high cost of living and depending on three others as roommates when each of you can only earn $10 an hour is a train wreck in your future. I agree that the stress would be overwhelming when one or all of your low income roommates have personal financial disasters in their lives and can't pay their share of the rent. No one asked you the question, so I'll ask you the question. Have you ever visited Hawaii? From you posts, it sounds like you've never visited Hawaii. If you can't afford to visit Hawaii several times, you can't afford to live there.
Most majors in colleges have a very low return on investment. You need to determine what type of work you want to do and what you want your life to look like in the future. It might be helpful for you to seek out successful people and talk to them how you can be successful, rather than give up and become a low wage, part time, no benefits, low skill set worker. You also need to make enough money to save for retirement, or your later years will be a disaster.
I understand your dislike of the cold winters in the snow belt. There are other places with a much lower cost of living, such as Florida. However, incomes are generally lower in Florida too. Some people aren't cut out for traditional college, and a technical college or trade school might be a better fit. I've made a lot of money, and saved a lot of money as the result of my two year technical college degree, which I completed in one year plus one quarter. I also have a BA degree, although my high income job is a result of the two year degree, not the four year degree.
I think you need to do some serious soul searching what you want your future to look like in 5, 10, 20, and 30 years from today. Do you want to live in abject poverty, living paycheck to paycheck, always broke, one paycheck away from being homeless? Or do you want to become financially successful?
I have only one suggestion I'm willing to post....May I suggest in preparation of any move, purchasing gift certificates/gift cards on one or more airlines that service the area airport you are looking to move close to. Most of them do not expire and you'd have a way home if the sh*t hits the fan and you need to leave but don't have the money to do so. I did this and have yet to use them but it's nice to know they are there 'just in case' I ever need them.
Gift card for airlines? 'Just in case'? You can't possibly be serious. If OP doesn't have the bare minimum financial responsibility/common sense to keep enough aside to pay for a ticket to go back home in case things go sour, OP should NOT even bother considering moving here.
Learn a trade, There is a huge shortage of tradesmen in this country, like plumbers. They make good money, you can do it at city colleges, and eventually work for yourself.
The plumbers I know here make $80-$100K++. Having a skill in a well-paid trade like electrical or plumbing can be very lucrative here.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
