San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Seattle–these are all major cities that many of us would love the chance to live in and explore, at least for a little while. These are also a few of the most expensive cities in the country, where the average rent in well into the four figures and where even daily expenses like groceries and coffee can set a person back major bucks if they aren’t careful. Living in an expensive city can be intimidating but now that you’ve found that job or life opportunity that is giving you the chance to live in one of the greatest cities in the country, you have to take it!
Pro movers like Mayflower have seen it all and can attest that each household move is drastically different. This is certainly true and, when you’re moving from a relatively cost-effective city to one that is loads more expensive, some special care will need to go into getting you from your current point A to your new point B. Here are some tips to help you out:
Aim Small and Shared
You’re probably thinking something along the lines of “wait, roommates again? Yuck! No way!” Yes way. Obviously if you’re moving a whole family: kids, pets, the works, you might want to find a way to forego the roommate situation. If it is just you or you and a significant other, roommates are the way to go. Starting out in a roommate situation will give you the chance of living in the city at a much more affordable rate while you get settled in and explore your new neighborhood and get to know your new home base.
This extends beyond roommate situations. If you are determined to find a home that is just yours, no sharing involved, aim small. Smaller apartments cost less to rent. Small houses cost less to maintain. It’s also good to pare down in the vehicle department. Be a one-car (or no car) family for a while. You can use the sale of your vehicles to boost your savings and offset your new cost of living while you get acclimated.
Suburbs Can Be Fun
San Francisco has some great suburbs where the rents and housing costs are (albeit marginally) cheaper than living in the city proper. New York, Seattle and LA have similar suburbs and boroughs. Unlike Seattle and LA, though, San Francisco and New York public transit are top notch and getting around is much easier without a car than with one, especially since the advent of ride shares, Uber, Lyft, smart cars, etc.
Pare Down? Not So Much
If you’re moving into a roommate situation you can likely get rid of much of what you own so that you better fit into the smaller space. If you’ve managed to find a place of your own, common wisdom says to pare down so that the move itself is cheaper and then you can re-purchase the things you need. Usually the rule is: if you haven’t touched it within six months and it doesn’t hold tremendous sentimental value, you can sell it/donate it/toss it.
With a move to a much more expensive city, however, you likely won’t have funds to simply re-buy things as you need them. Paring down is still a good idea, but expand your parameters to a year or 18 months. The move itself might cost a little bit more money, but you’ll save a bundle in household goods purchase costs.
Stop Shopping
Stop shopping for everything (except absolute essentials like food and hygiene products) for at least a year and put the money you would have been spending into your savings account. This doesn’t mean that you have to go totally without ever getting new (to you) stuff or having any fun! Cities like San Francisco, New York, etc have amazing sharing networks where you can find almost anything you need for free (or close to it) as long as you’re willing to pick it up and transport it home yourself.
Expensive cities also almost always have a wide swath of entertainment options that don’t cost a thing. Concerts and movies in parks, family days, etc. Flip through the local free weeklies to find out what’s happening cost-free near you or start following local events social media feeds and websites for updates and great entertainment that won’t cost you anything.
When you move to an expensive city, you aren’t just moving to a new town; you’re moving into a new lifestyle. This means that you need to prepare for life beyond the move itself. Hopefully the tips and tricks we’ve shared here will help make the adjustment process a lot easier.
