words Al Woods
Maybe the cost of living in your current city has just gotten out of control and you need a cheaper place to call home. The benefits of moving to a bustling city are endless. Big city life usually brings along more job opportunities, a wider range of industries to work in, amazing restaurants, and event venues.
Even with all the exciting perks of relocating to a larger city, going out there on your own can be daunting. There also may be a drastic change in your cost of living that you will need to plan for. If moving to a big city is in your future, take the following steps into consideration.
Do Your Research
Thanks to the internet, you can learn a lot about your new city before you make your move. Look up practical information, like housing costs and weather patterns. If you have children, you can search one of the many school rating websites out there to compare your local district rankings.
Community news pages and local social media forums can also give you a good idea about the culture and happenings in the city. Most online job boards will let you filter jobs by location. You can use this feature to get a sense of the job market and the kinds of roles that are available. Websites like Glassdoor can help you figure out the kind of salary range you can expect in your industry.
Make a Budget
Even if your final destination will result in lower living costs, moving is expensive. You may need to take time off work to complete your move. If you don’t have a job in hand, you will need a considerable savings cushion to get you through the first few months.
Use the figures you’ve found during the research phase to estimate your monthly expenses. For example, you may be able to eliminate car maintenance costs by moving to a neighborhood accessible to public transportation. On the other hand, if city center rents are astronomical, it may be more affordable to live in the suburbs and keep your car.
Run through several different scenarios so that you can determine how much your desired lifestyle will cost. From there, set a goal to save at least a month’s worth of living expenses to support you during your move. If you plan on starting the job hunt after arriving, bump your savings goal to three months’ expenses or more.
Move Thoughtfully
Packing up your whole life in order to move to a new city can be overwhelming. Make the process easier on yourself by approaching your move in an organized manner. Before packing any of your things, do a deep decluttering.
This prevents you from hauling items that don’t really serve a purpose. Further, you can sell usable, but unneeded items to get a bit more cash in hand, which is always appreciated during a move.
Once you’ve narrowed your belongings down to the essentials, you can put together a moving day plan. Most people relocating to a new city will use a combination of self-moving and professional help.
Self-moving options include renting a moving truck and transporting your items by yourself. Sometimes, people will hire professional movers to load and unload the truck, and do the packing themselves.
Portable pods are another hybrid option for people who want to delegate some of the moving tasks. Pod companies will deliver a portable storage box to your home that you can fill up yourself.
Once the pod is packed, the company will pick up the box and ship it out to your new location. If you are flying or taking the bus to your new city, pods are a perfect solution.
Go Exploring
Few moments are more exhilarating than the first few weeks in a new city. Make the most of the experience by exploring the city. Set some time aside during the first few days of your arrival to do some sightseeing.
You can learn a lot about the city’s neighborhoods and offerings by simply walking around. You can also use this opportunity to learn the city’s public transportation system and figure out how to get to important landmarks. If you’re not sure where to start, create a must-see list based on recommendations from travel blogs and tourism websites.
Get to Know People
Arriving in a brand new location without a job may leave you wondering how to make new friends in a new city without that built-in social circle. Luckily, most major cities offer lots of options where newcomers can gather and meet new people.
Joining a club based on your interests is one of the best ways to connect with others. You can even start socializing before your move by joining social media groups created for other transplants.
