Psychology of people who Move Frequently (anxiety, husband, college, issues)
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.
I immigrated to the US at an early age and spent the vast majority of my life here, having lived on 3 different continents. Just in the past 10 years ago, I've lost count how many addresses I've had (10-15, mostly due to changing colleges and jobs.) The longest I've ever stayed at a single address (including in my childhood) was about 1/3 of my life.
Some of my observations of myself pertaining to this (I'll try to be as unbiased as possible even though that's impossible):
- Little national/local identity. I don't really identify with the culture of my birth nation (China) or the US.
- Material things: Most people who visit my home as astonished how little "stuff" I have.. even those who make less than me. I honestly find it a huge hassle to keep lots of things around when it's likely moving day could be coming anytime soon.
- Choice of home: I tend to rent the cheapest place that I can reasonably stand to live in even if I can afford something better. Buying a home is something I don't even think about. I also tend not to invest emotionally into any new locale.
- Getting sick of waking up and seeing the same streets and buildings every single day: I kinda feel this way after living at the same address for more than a year. Moving within the same metro area (i.e. Southern California) or even to a different neighborhood in the same city cures this. (Although this excuse alone isn't enough to justify another move.) It also leads me to think that if I bought a house, I'd probably end up in a mental institution after, say, 5 years.
On a side note, I've been told moving frequently hurts credit scores despite my score in the top 10% (and it could probably be even higher if I stayed in the same place for a year or two more but that's not a tradeoff I'd consider.)
I'm curious what sort of red flags come up about someone who habitually moves more than once a year on average and has done so for the vast majority of their adult life and doesn't have any other glaring issues (i.e. criminal record, drug abuse, etc.)
There are no inherent red flags. You sound like the modern equivalent of a nomad. Nothing inherently wrong with that.
You mention being bored when there is no change of scenery. Are you easily bored? Does it create anxiety or other issues, such that moving is a way to deal with that anxiety that's less effective than others might be or that doesn't get to root causes?
Moving would tend to make committed relationships of any kind rather difficult. Do you move to avoid them, or do you just not need them, or do you get them some other way?
Like a lot of things, "it all depends".
Beyond some of the things I've mentioned above, which to answer you would need to do some self reflection, I see no inherent red flags.
As for credit scores, they are not a perfect measure of risk and they can be fooled. My software designs drive some of the commercial credit bureaus in the US, so while I have some concept of the issues, I'm not terribly familiar with the consumer side of things. But based on what I know of it, credit scores like predictability and stability so there is at least an even chance that constant moving counts a little against you, or at least will if other negative factors are present. I would not be particularly concerned about it given that your history is otherwise "clean". I would keep an eye on it, particularly if your name is fairly common (e.g., Joe Smith, Bill Johnson) so that you don't get your credit history polluted with other people by the same name; given all your address changes something could be erroneously matched to you. But then, anyone should check their own credit history annually, as by some measures up to 70% of all credit histories have at least one error in them.
I get antsy if I live at the same place for 2 years. Neighbors annoy me. Coworkers and bosses annoy me after a while. Driving the same freakin way to work for years, ugh. Grocery shopping in the same store for years, noooo. Same people at gym. Same dog barking all night for years, grrr
I have moved around in Germany about 8 times in a radius of 80 mls. I have lived in VA and in CA for a total of 7 years, and did about 5 moves. Just the packing and unpacking and decorating and looking for a new place gets me excited.
Maybe it is because I haven't found my perfect place yet? Not sure.
I'm a nomad as well. Husband gets restless when I finally get settled somewhere, but we always start a new adventure within 5 years of the last move. We don't have children and we often credit not taking enough vacations to see new places as the reason we pack up and move somewhere interesting. I like fresh, new, and unexplored places constantly. It does make it hard to keep friends and establish yourself within communities where great things happen, but the more people we meet and learn from, the more enriched we feel in our lives.
I used to think I was trying to run away from myself, but dangit, I kept showing up everywhere!
I have moved nine times in the last ten years. All about more money. If I had been born with a fat trust fund, I would have been perfectly content to live where I grew up, or stayed teaching school. I often wonder how different my life would have been if I had financial security. Or content on living a modest life. However, I support three people, and that drives me. I have quadrupled my income in eight years. A significant achievement.
...I'm curious what sort of red flags come up about someone who habitually moves more than once a year on average...
Well I would think the person does not read or own any books... If you have a lot of books and move, you will not be in a hurry to move again!
Seriously places of work have no business judging people who frequently move - being as they no longer offer lifetime employment, try to get rid of the employees who have been there a long time - get rid of employees making more money, etc. Some people have no choice but to move frequently.
And many younger people like to travel around and see different cities / states. A good way to do that is to move to different areas. I did this when younger, but settled down when older.
I immigrated to the US at an early age and spent the vast majority of my life here, having lived on 3 different continents. Just in the past 10 years ago, I've lost count how many addresses I've had (10-15, mostly due to changing colleges and jobs.) The longest I've ever stayed at a single address (including in my childhood) was about 1/3 of my life.
Some of my observations of myself pertaining to this (I'll try to be as unbiased as possible even though that's impossible):
- Little national/local identity. I don't really identify with the culture of my birth nation (China) or the US.
- Material things: Most people who visit my home as astonished how little "stuff" I have.. even those who make less than me. I honestly find it a huge hassle to keep lots of things around when it's likely moving day could be coming anytime soon.
- Choice of home: I tend to rent the cheapest place that I can reasonably stand to live in even if I can afford something better. Buying a home is something I don't even think about. I also tend not to invest emotionally into any new locale.
- Getting sick of waking up and seeing the same streets and buildings every single day: I kinda feel this way after living at the same address for more than a year. Moving within the same metro area (i.e. Southern California) or even to a different neighborhood in the same city cures this. (Although this excuse alone isn't enough to justify another move.) It also leads me to think that if I bought a house, I'd probably end up in a mental institution after, say, 5 years.
On a side note, I've been told moving frequently hurts credit scores despite my score in the top 10% (and it could probably be even higher if I stayed in the same place for a year or two more but that's not a tradeoff I'd consider.)
I'm curious what sort of red flags come up about someone who habitually moves more than once a year on average and has done so for the vast majority of their adult life and doesn't have any other glaring issues (i.e. criminal record, drug abuse, etc.)
I am a nomad as well; I can't believe how accurately you just described my mindset when it comes to this all.
I'm not the type to live in the same location for more than a few years.
The longest I've lived in a set place as an adult is 5 years.
And the only reason I stayed that long was bc my landlord was one of my closest friends
It's too predictable & too mundane for me to stay put.
That being said, I'd love to find a place that "feels" like home.....
where I am currently, is not home to me anymore.
My wife and I are incurable wanderers. I love the whole process ~ The search for a new area, the search for housing, the anticipation when you step off the plane or out of the car for your first visit, its an addictive dopamine fueled feeling of adventure and cleansing of the soul
There are many gypsy souls in this world. I'm one of them.
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.
