For practically my whole life, I’ve been set on moving to a bigger city. If you have this desire, you know what I’m talking about! I would love to live in several iconic cities throughout my life. What is most appealing to me is the opportunity you can find in larger cities. For my degree, theatre, it’s practically impossible to have a career removed from a metropolis. (It’s practically impossible in 2020 too, but let’s not talk about that…)
But actually doing the dang thing is a lot harder than it sounds. 😛 (Maybe that’s why so many people never leave my hometown?) I got to figure this out for myself: Moving is hard! Moving by yourself to a new city is hard!
Here’s how I did it, but more importantly, here’s how you can do it too!
Creating a game plan for moving
Ok, so you’re gonna move. You’ve got some decisions to make. Basically, if you’re gonna be a fresh transplant in a new city, you have two choices, and there are pros and cons to each.
- Find housing first
- Find a job first
Finding housing first: Honestly, this seems more fun to me. When I was getting ready to move, I loved looking at apartments and spaces waiting to be decorated. If this is really important to you, or if you’re moving for the sake of a job, then you’re gonna wanna go ahead and find a place to live! However, for myself I felt a little nervous locking into a lease without a steady stream of income.
One serious benefit of finding housing before you have employment is that it is so much easier to get a job in an area you already live in. Luckily, Minneapolis was (barely) within driving distance for me when I was interviewing, so I could make it to the city a couple times for interviews. I definitely missed out on some opportunities simply because of distance though.
If you’re finding a place to live first without a job, that’s perfectly fine. Many people do that. The typical recommendation is to have 3-6 months of rent and expenses saved up when you move to give you time to find a job.
Finding a job first: This is definitely the friendlier financial option when you are moving. You will know exactly what kind of place you will be able to afford and what area you should look for housing in order to reduce your commute. This option has it’s own stressors (you can check out these resources for job hunting, which is a whole other ball game) but is ultimately the path I chose.
Now that you’ve decided which headache you’re going to tackle first, it’s time to take action!
Finding a job
If you’re moving to the city for a new career opportunity, then skip this step (lucky you!). If you’re like me, then you’re again, you’re gonna wanna look at this post for more details, but I’ll give you a brief breakdown here.
How lucky are we that we live in the age of the internet? We can apply for jobs in a city a thousand miles away and have it actually come to fruition. You’re gonna want to get on Indeed and LinkedIn immediately. I know there are other job hunting sites there, but honestly, you’re gonna get overwhelmed if you try to be on every single job hunting website. Apart from maybe some local listings, stick to the main two: Indeed and LinkedIn.
I started my job hunt with a vision of what I wanted to do, and grew to be much less particular! For me, it was more important to get to the city quickly than find the perfect employment opportunity. I ended up getting a job in an industry I never envisioned myself being in, but it’s been a great experience. You should consider that a good fitting job may not be exactly what you have envisioned for yourself, but you can still learn a lot and reap the benefits.
So the next step after finding a job, if that’s the path you chose first, is to find housing. Woohoo!
Finding housing
I’m just gonna say it, it’s a lot more fun to shop for housing with a lot of $$$. If this is the case for you, congrats, but that wasn’t the case for me, and likely my audience too. (Young, hopeful, artistes :P). I pretty much knew my dream condo was out of the question in this season, so here’s the path I would recommend instead.
Sublease first! Subleasing is a great way to have an easy transition to a city without fully committing to a lease before you have the feel for an area. Likely, there are people who need someone to live in their places while they are on an extended leave, so it’s a pretty symbiotic deal.
If there is a university in the city you’re moving to (there usually is) student housing is definitely a possibility. You may have to live in an outdated house with some other roommates, but hey, it could be worse! You may even make some new friends along the way.
Start looking on Facebook. The Facebook marketplace can be a great place to find listings for people needing subleasers. There are of course filters you can use to find listings appropriate for you based on price and geographical area. Don’t forget to join housing Facebook groups! There is a massive group for University of Minnesota alumni housing, your desired city probably has one too.
How about Craigslist? It’s a great way to find listings for people seeking roommates or subleasers. I know Craigslist gets a bad rap (and that’s probably earned…) but y’all, that’s where I found my current living situation! It actually work out about 10x better than I thought it would, so I would definitely recommend giving it a shot.
Ask friends and family about housing. This is probably the most preferable option because personal recommendations go a long way! People are going to be much more willing to live with you if you’re personally recommended to them. The reverse is true as well I would assume. It certainly doesn’t hurt to ask around and have your friends keep their ears to the ground.
Packing for the Move
If you’re moving by yourself, you may have some added challenges. (Like moving a futon up 2 flights of stairs, yikes!) I want to tell you something that will make it easier for you: you don’t need to take absolutely everything. I’m a kind of minimalist, (I think you should be too, here’s why) so my mindset made it easier to move. I actually ended up fitting almost everything I needed into my station wagon.
A serious perk of packing minimally is that you get to find new pieces from your city to furnish your home! You will have the opportunity to procure new things for this new chapter of your life. Doesn’t that sound nice?
Personally, I would recommend not packing for the entire calendar year on your initial haul. I don’t know about you, but I always end up accruing more seasonal clothes than I need. I’m not going to stress about bringing my winter boots if I’m moving in July. Basically, just bring what you need for work, weekends, and fitness. Maybe a couple fun items too. 🙂
Packing light is my jam. This is why subleasing is such a great option for moving, you won’t have to provide any furnishings for yourself. (You can bet I brought a personal coffee maker though.)
What to do when it gets hard
It may sound kind of negative, but it’s not: expect things to go wrong. Being a one-woman show, packing up your life, and starting a new chapter is complicated. There will be things that don’t end up like you planned.
I thought it would take me a month to move from my hometown to Minneapolis. It took me 3 months. Even working diligently and applying for jobs on my lunch breaks, I got so many ‘nos’ before I even got an interview. The girl I was going to get an apartment with bailed on me last minute. (She’s still in my hometown.)
When I finally got to Minneapolis and everything finally seemed to be falling into place, my car died the day before I start my new job. I spent my first day at work making calls to the auto shop, wondering if I would be without transportation in a new city.
However, I never once thought about throwing in the towel. It would have been so easy to stay where I was comfortable, but I never made that an option. I expected things to go wrong, and they did. I dealt with them, and moved on.
You can too, you’ve got this. You can figure it out. 🙂
What To Do When You Get There
Explore! Take some time to enjoy this great accomplishment! Moving by yourself is not easy. Definitely take some time to take in the local sights and cuisine. Find some interesting furnishings for your new space. It can be nerve wracking to transplant yourself to a new city, take some time to appreciate your efforts.
So, where are you off to?
