Moving to Cali or Florida with no job lined up (Orlando: 2015, apartment)

[Ryanm93]

Hello everyone, as you can see from the topic, I have some questions about moving to one of these two states without having a job waiting for me. I've been googling for days to find people's stories about how they did it and they steps they took. Each time I found something along those lines, it was on this site. So, I made an account and now am I asking for advice. Yes, I understand how it sounds and to some, or most, it may sound absurd, and a certain disaster. But I am putting everything I have into making this work, and one way or another, I will make the move. Now, here's a little back ground info and what not, I'm a 22 year old male living in the mid west. More specifically, northern Illinois. I've lived here all my life and I must say, it's time to get out. I've always dreamed of living in Florida. There's just something about the weather and atmosphere of it that draws me too it. I'm also in love with the ocean. That's a huge factor for me. But more recently, I've considered California due to the fact that the landscape is so much more dynamic. There's mountains, and deserts, and so much more. In still leaning more towards California but one thing that makes the 2 differ greatly is the cost of living in each state. Florida seems a lot cheaper all the way around. When I make this move, I want to be somewhere near the ocean. No, I don't mean right next to it because I know I won't be able to afford that. But a short drive would be ideal. Moving on, I pay 1000 a month to live where I do. I own 2 vehicles and have been on my own for a long time. I do not hold a college degree, and I do not wish to. I know I can find jobs out there, wherever I may go. You just have to look and be committed. I'm currently a cnc machine operator making 15 an hour, and living off my 40 hour weeks. But I am at a point in my life where I'm ready to move on from everything, and make my dreams a reality. I made myself a 2 year plan, and thats what I'm sticking to. In that time, I can pay off some bills, and save some money. I plan to move fall of 2017, and I may have upwards of 6-7 grand saved up by then. Enough of me going on about this, can I please have some people tell me how they did it, and what they did to get there. How did you find an apartment? How did you find that job? I don't need encouragement or anyone telling me it's not the best idea. People, youll never be happy if you don't such risks to seek happiness. That is simply what I'm doing. Thanks in advance for the replies.

-Ryan

[PDF]

The one thing that concerns me is you said you'll only have 6-7 grand saved up by Fall 2015. You'll need more than that saved up for a move like this. I have moved cross-country without a job before, and I simply saved up money (10 grand or more) and went. Look for a roommate situation on Craigslist and start applying for jobs.

[Arcenal813]

Originally Posted by Ryanm93

Hello everyone, as you can see from the topic, I have some questions about moving to one of these two states without having a job waiting for me. I've been googling for days to find people's stories about how they did it and they steps they took. Each time I found something along those lines, it was on this site. So, I made an account and now am I asking for advice. Yes, I understand how it sounds and to some, or most, it may sound absurd, and a certain disaster. But I am putting everything I have into making this work, and one way or another, I will make the move. Now, here's a little back ground info and what not, I'm a 22 year old male living in the mid west. More specifically, northern Illinois. I've lived here all my life and I must say, it's time to get out. I've always dreamed of living in Florida. There's just something about the weather and atmosphere of it that draws me too it. I'm also in love with the ocean. That's a huge factor for me. But more recently, I've considered California due to the fact that the landscape is so much more dynamic. There's mountains, and deserts, and so much more. In still leaning more towards California but one thing that makes the 2 differ greatly is the cost of living in each state. Florida seems a lot cheaper all the way around. When I make this move, I want to be somewhere near the ocean. No, I don't mean right next to it because I know I won't be able to afford that. But a short drive would be ideal. Moving on, I pay 1000 a month to live where I do. I own 2 vehicles and have been on my own for a long time. I do not hold a college degree, and I do not wish to. I know I can find jobs out there, wherever I may go. You just have to look and be committed. I'm currently a cnc machine operator making 15 an hour, and living off my 40 hour weeks. But I am at a point in my life where I'm ready to move on from everything, and make my dreams a reality. I made myself a 2 year plan, and thats what I'm sticking to. In that time, I can pay off some bills, and save some money. I plan to move fall of 2017, and I may have upwards of 6-7 grand saved up by then. Enough of me going on about this, can I please have some people tell me how they did it, and what they did to get there. How did you find an apartment? How did you find that job? I don't need encouragement or anyone telling me it's not the best idea. People, youll never be happy if you don't such risks to seek happiness. That is simply what I'm doing. Thanks in advance for the replies.

-Ryan

You can find CNC work here pretty easily.
Lots of companies will want you to have at least some programming knowledge, though.
An operator-only will make between $8-$12 on average. I've known of some individuals who self-taught themselves some programming in order to perform minor changes while working as operators, and have seen some make $15-$25/hr. It's definitely doable.

That said, what is this "atmosphere" you say you like about Florida?

[Ryanm93]

I plan to use craigslist for housing and job opportunities. 6-7 grand is a rough estimate. It all depends how fast I pay off my medical bills, and sell one of the cars I own. Once both of those are out of the way, having 10 grand put aside by fall 2017 will not be a problem.

[Ryanm93]

I have only been to Florida a couple times and each time I spent my stay near the gulf. I can't speak for the entire state, or how it is in southern Florida, but in every way it's different from the Midwest. The weather/climate, the people, the way of life. You get the idea.

[WithDisp]

If you're in love with the ocean and the atmosphere, maybe you should consider somewhere other than Florida's largest landlocked city. :\ Good luck in the hunt out there.

[Spring Hillian]

I did the move with no job thing but that was 27 years ago. I would have at least $20k cash on hand. Rents are high here, jobs pay $10-15 an hour for the most part. You are young and single. Thats good.

We had an apartment before we moved. We came down and put a deposit and first months rent down and went back home. 1 day trip. That allowed us to get utilities going. We used a book called "The Apartment Guide" to select a place i n an area we thought would be good. It was good.

I kinda lined up a job by chatting on the phone with the manager of the place I wanted to work. He said "give me a call when you get here". I did and got a job.

We had $10k set aside for the move, new furniture and future expenses. We figured that would hold us for 6 months.

All in all it worked out well but the planning was tough. Lots of research and there wasnt an Internet out there, well not for civilians. We subscribed to the local newspaper Sunday only edition. That gave us insight to rent, jobs and what was going on. Big help. We also communicated with people who were already here. We did have Compuserve back then. Again, very helpful in answering our questions and concerns.

Like you, we had our minds made up 2.5 years before we pulled it off. We had the same attitude. "we are here and we are going to make it work".

Happy planning.

Originally Posted by Ryanm93

Hello everyone, as you can see from the topic, I have some questions about moving to one of these two states without having a job waiting for me. I've been googling for days to find people's stories about how they did it and they steps they took. Each time I found something along those lines, it was on this site. So, I made an account and now am I asking for advice. Yes, I understand how it sounds and to some, or most, it may sound absurd, and a certain disaster. But I am putting everything I have into making this work, and one way or another, I will make the move. Now, here's a little back ground info and what not, I'm a 22 year old male living in the mid west. More specifically, northern Illinois. I've lived here all my life and I must say, it's time to get out. I've always dreamed of living in Florida. There's just something about the weather and atmosphere of it that draws me too it. I'm also in love with the ocean. That's a huge factor for me. But more recently, I've considered California due to the fact that the landscape is so much more dynamic. There's mountains, and deserts, and so much more. In still leaning more towards California but one thing that makes the 2 differ greatly is the cost of living in each state. Florida seems a lot cheaper all the way around. When I make this move, I want to be somewhere near the ocean. No, I don't mean right next to it because I know I won't be able to afford that. But a short drive would be ideal. Moving on, I pay 1000 a month to live where I do. I own 2 vehicles and have been on my own for a long time. I do not hold a college degree, and I do not wish to. I know I can find jobs out there, wherever I may go. You just have to look and be committed. I'm currently a cnc machine operator making 15 an hour, and living off my 40 hour weeks. But I am at a point in my life where I'm ready to move on from everything, and make my dreams a reality. I made myself a 2 year plan, and thats what I'm sticking to. In that time, I can pay off some bills, and save some money. I plan to move fall of 2017, and I may have upwards of 6-7 grand saved up by then. Enough of me going on about this, can I please have some people tell me how they did it, and what they did to get there. How did you find an apartment? How did you find that job? I don't need encouragement or anyone telling me it's not the best idea. People, youll never be happy if you don't such risks to seek happiness. That is simply what I'm doing. Thanks in advance for the replies.

-Ryan

[kyle19125]

Originally Posted by WithDisp

If you're in love with the ocean and the atmosphere, maybe you should consider somewhere other than Florida's largest landlocked city. :\ Good luck in the hunt out there.

Exactly. Orlando's "atmosphere" is quite different from coastal towns on the Gulf.

[Sydney123]

First and foremost... Drop the word "Cali" from your vocabulary.

[PDF]

Originally Posted by Ryanm93

I have only been to Florida a couple times and each time I spent my stay near the gulf. I can't speak for the entire state, or how it is in southern Florida, but in every way it's different from the Midwest. The weather/climate, the people, the way of life. You get the idea.

Well Orlando isn't in South Florida. It's inland and there is no beach.