You’ve been living in the same city all your life, and now that you just resigned from your employer, you’re thinking about moving to another city. Although very risky, you believe that moving will actually do wonders for your career opportunities, social circle and even improve the quality of your life. You think that the change of scenery will serve as your fuel to push yourself to do more. After all, everyone deserves a fresh start, right?
Moving to a new city isn’t a decision which should happen overnight; there are several things to consider, and none of these should be neglected. If you jump into making a hasty decision, you’ll experience consequences which can affect your life long-term. Moving to a new city will end up doing more harm than good. If you want to stray away from this direction and enjoy benefits when moving to a new city, consider the following first:
- Research the cost of living: Moving isn’t just a one-time thing; you’ll have a long list of to-dos before, during and after the move. For starters, you’ll have to pack all of your valuables and look for a moving company for your move and purchase several items for your home the moment you arrive in the new city. All of these will already entail cost – and you’ll spend more than what you’ve expected if you don’t have any idea of the cost of living in a new city. Do your own homework and research about the price of the goods and services sold in the city you’re eyeing to work with. Movers NYC might charge as twice as the movers in your current city so make sure you and your pocket are prepared.
- Determine how you’re going to stack up: Now that you already have an idea of the cost of living in this city, assess how you’re going to pay for all of these. If you’re moving because another job is already waiting for you, things will come easier. You’ll have a steady source of income, and you can basically live independently.
On the other side of the coin, if you’re moving to a new city without a job, assess how long can your savings sustain your living and how long can you find a job here. If you think you’ll need to starve yourself just so you can move to a new city, it’s best if you rethink your choices.
- Make social and professional connections: If you have friends who are living in this new city, inform them that you’re moving and ask help on how you can make social and professional connections. Your friends living in this city might belong to a professional organization apt for your career choices, so take the time to mingle with this circle. But if you barely know anyone from this new city, have the guts to make the first move to make social and professional connections. Introduce yourself to your neighbors or offer a seat to a local whenever you’re eating in public areas. These are some of the easiest ways for you to expand your social circle.
- Learn about transportation options: In your current city, you rarely use your car because there are accessible transportations options from your home. You can easily ride the bus early in the morning and late in the evening. However, keep in mind that the same convenience might no longer be present in the city where you’re moving. There might be fewer transportation options which can hinder you from going in and out of the neighborhood especially if you have a job. Worse, public transportation might only be limited to a certain time of the day so make sure you’re informed about this. If you’re planning to bring a car, assess if you have safe parking options.
- Get rid of unnecessary possessions: Regardless of how expensive or rare an item is if you’re no longer using or wearing it, leave it in your existing city. Sure, doing this might be hard (especially if these items were sentimental to you) but getting rid of unnecessary possessions can actually be very helpful for the move. When you decide to let go of these items, you’ll have the option of either donating or selling these. The latter can help you earn money which you can use for your moving expenses. Bringing lesser items also means cheaper moving expenses. You won’t also end up bringing items which will only collect dust in your new apartment or home.
Watch Your Steps
There’s nothing really wrong if you want to start with a clean slate in a new city. If you’re already stressed or ran out of options in your current city, go ahead and do it. Just make sure that you’re actually considering all of the factors involved with your decision. You can’t possibly go back from your old hometown just because you realized the lifestyle in the new city isn’t your cup of tea. Not only is this costly, but very stressful, as well. Look into the matter carefully and weigh its pros and cons first so your next move to a new city will give you the benefits you expect.