If you’re thinking about packing up and moving to another city, there are a few things that you should consider. While this grocery list could be incredibly long, we narrowed the list down to what we believe to be some of the most important factors to consider before moving to a new city. Beyond choosing a reputable moving company, you want to look at aspects of your life that may be affected (for the better, of course) when you move to a new city or a new state altogether. When you’re ready to move, we’ll be here to help make the packing and moving experience an easy one!
The Housing Market
The first thing to consider when moving to another location is whether or not you can afford to purchase a home in that area. This factor is significantly more important if you move from a rural area to a more densely populated city center where housing is more expensive. The other thing to consider is what time of year you are moving in. If the real estate market is thriving and home prices steadily rise, that may affect which areas of a new city you can or should move to. For example, if you are moving from California to Las Vegas, you may decide to move during the late Summer months instead of the busier times of the year.
Cost of Living
In the same vein as the housing market, the cost of living may impact your decision to move to a certain location. The cost of living is calculated by determining how far the same amount of money will go in different cities. For example, $100,000 will have more purchasing power in Las Vegas than in San Francisco. Cost of living factors includes rent, utilities, and goods and services.
Education
If you have children or plan on having children in the future, you want to look at the quality of education in the cities you are considering moving to. There are two ways to look at education rankings when considering a new city or state. The first is to look at education rankings by state. The second way is to look at individual school rankings, awards, and achievements per city.
Employment
Depending on what industry you work in, you may have an easier (or way more difficult) time finding employment prospects in a new city. While certain careers are pretty universally certain applicable, economies are more focused on niche industries. Las Vegas, for example, is largely driven by hospitality and tourism, whereas San Francisco is largely about tech. Additionally, you can find better pay for the same job description in one city, but you should look at the cost of living at the same time to factor in if it is worth it or not to move there to advance your career.