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Old 07-17-2013, 08:32 AM
 
490 posts, read 925,079 times
Reputation: 268

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Quote:
Originally Posted by atlien2010 View Post
I have a "solid" job here, but its pretty dead end. I'm not happy here. I've looked for other opportunities here, but haven't found anything. That's why I decided to take my job search elsewhere.

I've visited the Mclean area before and thought it was really nice. And I really just want to do something new. I've lived in Atlanta my whole life.

I really want to think about this realistically though. I'm assuming roommates are fairly common here. How would I find one, being new to town? Craigslist seems pretty sketchy to me.

You wont be able to afford Mclean but doesn't mean you cant look at other places around Fairfax, va......I just want you to know the D.C. area is VERY expensive......so if you do move be prepare to sacrifice until land a better position........Goof luck bro!!!!!!!!!
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Old 07-17-2013, 12:09 PM
 
194 posts, read 400,982 times
Reputation: 166
Get rid of the car. $300/month is nuts.
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Old 07-19-2013, 09:40 AM
 
Location: Mclean, Va; West Palm Beach, Fl
513 posts, read 962,309 times
Reputation: 324
I will continue with beating this dead thread into the ground.

45K is too little to live in Mclean/Great Falls/Vienna by yourself. Your income is too little to qualify for most apartments in the area or to rent from Condo owners.

Try living further out in fairfax getting a room or rent and save up some money. Housing in ATL is almost free compared to DC market. DC/NOVA is some of the priciest real estate in the country!
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Old 07-19-2013, 09:59 AM
 
150 posts, read 298,538 times
Reputation: 105
Oh heavens, you can certainly survive here on that salary. My husband wasn't making much more than that when we moved here four years ago, and we were expecting our second child. I am a stay-at-home mom, so that was all we were living on. To be fair, his employer was paying his student loans, but other than that, we managed. It was very, very tight until he got his first raise a year later, but we made it. We lived in a newly remodeled 3-bedroom in Reston for $1350 (it was a steal--we found it the day it was listed). I think you should definitely be able to find a one-bedroom in Reston or Herndon in your price range, without roommates. Find a real estate agent, though. I don't know how Atlanta is. We came from a place where it was uncommon to use an agent for rentals, but it is definitely the norm here, and it made a HUGE difference for us.

Congratulations on your new job! Don't let the NoVa naysayers (love you guys ) get you down!
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Old 07-19-2013, 03:21 PM
 
Location: Huntersville/Charlotte, NC and Washington, DC
26,700 posts, read 41,768,175 times
Reputation: 41381
Quote:
Originally Posted by JavaJunkieDC View Post
Get rid of the car. $300/month is nuts.
Actually that is a pretty reasonable car payment depending on the interest rate.

A $300 dollar payment would fetch a total amount financed of around $16k at 4.5% which is the average rate I see at the financial institution I work at. $16k would get you into a 2008-2010 Camry, Accord, or Altima pretty easily. Those cars have pretty low cost of ownership because of their reliability (I can attest as the owner of an 08 Accord.) Also you can buy a lot of smaller newer cars for under $16k.

I personally don't think that is an outrageous car payment. I may be biased since I have clients who have monthly payments North of $700 on luxury cars like BMWs and Mercedes which are extremely expensive to maintain.
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Old 05-07-2014, 02:24 PM
 
31 posts, read 45,785 times
Reputation: 46
So its been about one year since I posted this.

A few updates:

I love it here! Best decision ever and no regrets! There are so many things to do in DC and I've met a lot of amazing people!

My budget has worked well so far. I am by no means rich and going out every weekend, but I am able to rent an apartment on my own (abt $1400/month) in Fairfax, have cable lol (its included in the rent), and go out to eat once or twice a month.

I bring my lunch to work 3-4 times a week and take advantage of free parking at the Metro on weekends when I want to go into DC.

Overall it has been a great experience, and I would definitely recommend anyone looking to make the same move.

I really hope this post will help others!
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Old 05-07-2014, 03:41 PM
 
Location: Spartanburg, SC
4,899 posts, read 7,454,188 times
Reputation: 3875
Glad to know it's going well! I love it when people come back for up-dates!
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Old 05-07-2014, 03:41 PM
 
2,688 posts, read 6,686,547 times
Reputation: 1291
Thanks for coming back and letting us know; people rarely do that. I'm very happy this worked out well for you!
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Old 05-07-2014, 04:25 PM
 
31 posts, read 45,785 times
Reputation: 46
Quote:
Originally Posted by atlien2010 View Post
So its been about one year since I posted this.

A few updates:

I love it here! Best decision ever and no regrets! There are so many things to do in DC and I've met a lot of amazing people!

My budget has worked well so far. I am by no means rich and going out every weekend, but I am able to rent an apartment on my own (abt $1400/month) in Fairfax, have cable lol (its included in the rent), and go out to eat once or twice a month.

I bring my lunch to work 3-4 times a week and take advantage of free parking at the Metro on weekends when I want to go into DC.

Overall it has been a great experience, and I would definitely recommend anyone looking to make the same move.

I really hope this post will help others!
Also wanted to add some advice. I posted that I had about $4000 saved up before I moved. I reallllly wish I had more saved up!! I had to pay pro-rated rent, security deposits, utility deposits, eventually 1st months rent, etc... It added up VERY quickly.

On top of that, since I was starting a new job in the middle of a pay period I didnt get paid for almost 3 weeks! That $4K didnt last as long as I thought it would.

If anything, save up more money!! I wish I had at least $8K saved up.
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Old 05-07-2014, 04:26 PM
 
31 posts, read 45,785 times
Reputation: 46
Quote:
Originally Posted by LynchburgLover View Post
Glad to know it's going well! I love it when people come back for up-dates!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Yankeesfan View Post
Thanks for coming back and letting us know; people rarely do that. I'm very happy this worked out well for you!
Thanks!!
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