Single mom of two wanting to relocate from cleveland ohio to arizona (Phoenix: truck rental, apartment)

[ms.dcjones79]

Hi all
I am a 28 yr old single mother of 2 debating on whether or not to relocate to the Phoenix area. I currently live in Ohio and of course want hotter weather. The weather is not the only reason I want to move. Good jobs in Ohio are very hard to come by and I was told I may be more successful in Phoenix. I do have a degree in Criminal Justice so if anyone knows what the job outlook looks like in that field please let me know.

I would be looking to rent a 2 bedroom for now until I become more accustom to the area. What areas are cheaper and safe and close to the city? I also would like to continue my education so I would like to be close to a school that has a criminal justice program.

One more thing...If there is anyone who has relocated from Ohio or a surrounding state could you please give me an estimate of moving expenses.
Thank You all.

[ivanabacowboy]

I relocated from Cleveland in September.

My company paid for my move and they had the movers that packed and everything and even took my car. Big bucks. Around $12-15K. HOWEVER, if you UHaul or if you get movers and pack yourself/drive your own vehicle, will be lots cheaper. My son moved out here in January. About as cheap as it gets. Packed all his stuff in the back of his full size pickup truck. Cost him about $300 or so in gas, $60 for one overnight at a Red Roof Inn and a few stops at McDonald's along the way.

I love it here. I live in northern Phoenix. This area is very nice, very new, and about as safe as anywhere else. Most of the crime in this area is property type crime (car theft, shoplifting, people stealing fruit off your fruit trees) rather than violent/personal crime. Not sure what part of Ohio you are from, but I would say this area is sort of the equivalent of a tad more upscale than Beachwood with a lot more palm trees and swimming pools.

This area is not cheap compared to Ohio standards, but not outrageously expensive. For an apartment in this area, you are looking at $1000 to north of $1600 for 2BR in most of the larger communities. There may be a few smaller communities you could get a bit lower. In Ohio, I was paying $900 for a 1200SF 2BR 1.5Bath townhouse up/down with shared garage. Here I have about 1100SF 2BR 2Bath private garage at $1079, tho I got in on a really good deal for the unit I have. I looked at one place which was in a very nice neighborhood (56th & Tatum) that was around $900, and another down off Shea & Scottsdale that was just a bit more.

That said, in general there are definitely more jobs out here, and better salaries than in Ohio. I would make sure especially if coming with children to have a job lined up first. That also will give you a better idea of what salary range/housing range you can look at.

Also if you have never been here, come for a visit first for interviews or to look for housing. I had been here numerous times on business and have family in the area before I even considered moving here.

I suggest strongly that you find the job and school you will attend first and then focus your housing search near those locations. The valley is a big big big place. The city of Phoenix alone is geographically huger than Cleveland. About 5x larger than Cleveland if I remember correctly. I think Scottsdale may be about the same square miles as Cleveland give or take.

I am not familiar with which schools have which programs, but there are a few community colleges close (Scottsdale and Paradise Valley are the 2 I have actually seen), and ASU is a doable commute.

[AZgarden]

We moved to Phx 7 years ago and used Upack.com Its a big ABF trailor they deliver empty and you fill it up. They hitch it to the driver and away it goes to your new state.
It was very economical for the two of us. The website can tell you what you want to know. Move with the Truck Rental Alternative - ABF U-Pack Moving

[ms.dcjones79]

Thank you for all the advice. Like you ivanabacowboy I am about 20mins west of the cleveland area. I am trying to stretch my funds to make a brief trip for some interviews. I have no family or anybody I know in phoenix so I cant seem to figure out what to do if I get a job with no place to stay or vice versa. I feel like I need to make this move as soon as possible in order to better myself and my family. I was hoping to find a job that helped with relocation fees, but that a no go. Does anybody have any advice I could be using from here in Ohio to help make this relocation possible? I feel like my dreams of relocating are slowly starting to go down the drain

[ivanabacowboy]

Advice: get the job first. Then find a place to stay within a reasonable commute of the job. Again, the valley is wayyyyy huger than Cleveland. To give you a bit of perspective: the city of Cleveland which until I got here I thought was a "big" city is almost 80 square miles, is entirely blown away by Phoenix in geographic size at 515 or so square miles. For added depth, realize that the entire drive from Cleveland to Cincinnati is only 240 miles... Drive to Cincinnati and back to Cleveland and you still would not have driven equivalent of every square mile of Phoenix. You could very easily without realizing it end up with an asbolutely horrendous daily commute.

Even a short commute out here can be awful if you need to use the freeway. If at all possible, find a commute where you don't need to use the freeway and can go straight surface streets. My commute is 10 miles directly down one surface street. Enough time for a cup of coffee, wolf down a breakfast sandwich and a cigarette.

Once you get here, finding housing is fairly easy. There are tons and tons of rentals. Some areas of town would still be nice and a bit lower priced than what I gave above.

You may be able to find an employer willing to help with relocation. That would be a huge help. Another suggestion: downsize as much as possible to give you that much less to move which will save on costs. I couldnt imagine a UHaul if you can do it yourself would be more than $1-2K including gas, tho I havent priced UHaul? Also of course you can negotiate for a much higher salary perhaps in your new job. ;-)

More advice: Take your time and do it right, rather than rushing and ending up in a situation you don't want to be in. There are jobs here, they wont all magically disappear overnight and will still be here when you can get a plan together.

[ms.dcjones79]

Thank You so much...I will make a brief 2 day trip down there in the next couple of months. I will be going to interviews at Maricopa Sheriffs Dept. and Arizona Dept. of Juvenile Corrections. Are you familiar with these places? Do you know exactly where they are located?
Your posting has made me breathe easier knowing that I should be able to get an apartment quickly. Do you think I should put in apartment applications while I am down there during the 2 days? The other road block i hit was realizing the jobs I am applying for have several different locations and if I get the job would not find out which one I would be stationed at until the last moment.
I hate to sound repetitive, but like you said its got to be right and Im scared, nervous, and excited all at the same time.

[uponthestair]

Get the job first. Don't worry about finding an apartment. They are everywhere. And 3 month leases are common. The Sheriffs Dept is in downtown Phoenix at 100 W Washington St and Jevenile Corrections has two locations: 555 West Iron, Mesa, AZ 85210 and 1122 N. 7th Street, Phoenix, AZ 85006. The Phoenix location is less than two miles from the sheriff's hq, maybe a ten minute drive and the Mesa location is about an hour from anywhere unless you live out that way.

[uponthestair]

PS: You don't need to apply for an apartment in advance. You walk in, they show you the apartment, if you want it they run your credit, take your money, and sign you up. You move right in same day.

[ms.dcjones79]

Thats is great advice. I was told the Mesa, Chandler area was a good area to live in, but if I got the job downtown Phoenix I was lookin at the Glendale area. If I was told correctly Glendale would be closest to ASU's west campus.

[westindian]

Originally Posted by ms.dcjones79

Thank you for all the advice. Like you ivanabacowboy I am about 20mins west of the cleveland area. I am trying to stretch my funds to make a brief trip for some interviews. I have no family or anybody I know in phoenix so I cant seem to figure out what to do if I get a job with no place to stay or vice versa. I feel like I need to make this move as soon as possible in order to better myself and my family. I was hoping to find a job that helped with relocation fees, but that a no go. Does anybody have any advice I could be using from here in Ohio to help make this relocation possible? I feel like my dreams of relocating are slowly starting to go down the drain

Hi there. I moved from Columbus, Ohio to Las Vegas three years ago and now I am on my way to Phoenix. We paid about $3,300 to move. We used Allied to move furiture for a small three bedroom house. There should some brokers in the phone book that represent the bigger moving companies. We used an auto transport company (can't remember the name) to move our SUV's...that was another $2,000. Hopefully this will help. Feel free to ask me an questions. Maybe I can help.