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Ok, how about this. Get your house sold in Jersey and pack up your stuff and start driving. Put whatever you are bringing into storage and stay for a week or two in a roach motel somewhere until you find a place to live. You could probably negotiate a price around $50 a night in a local hotel. You will be able to find something affordable in two weeks probably. You will be local then and can look through papers and local advertisements for "roommates" wanted to if you feel like going that route to save some money as well.
i just looked through your house and it doesn't look like it's 3000 square feet. i think you could easily fit your furniture into something half that size.
i pay $110/month for a storage unit the holds 2000 ft3 of stuff. according to U-haul, that 4+ bedrooms plus all the rest of a house's worth of stuff.
I agree with tights24! You are young, and it sounds like you are financially responsible. You will be fine, especially if you have a decent savings you are bringing with you (and are planning on going to school). You only live once, and this may be your chance to head west and live somewhere you really want to live. Fort Collins is a great city and CSU is a great school! I was actually accepted at UNL in addition to CSU. However, when I really started thinking about it, I realized there was no way I wanted to live in Lincoln. Of course, it's fine city for those that like the midwest and what it has to offer. But, for me anyways, you can't see mountains, let alone play in them on the weekends without a major road trip. Go with your gut! It's great that you are thinking about the financials so much, as many young people don't at all. I get why you are. You don't have a parent to fall back on. However, with careful budgeting you will manage just fine. My 2 cents...
i just looked through your house and it doesn't look like it's 3000 square feet. i think you could easily fit your furniture into something half that size.
i pay $110/month for a storage unit the holds 2000 ft3 of stuff. according to U-haul, that 4+ bedrooms plus all the rest of a house's worth of stuff.
The basement isn't included in the sqft assessment because it's unfinished, and it's huge (And full of furniture).
It sounds like you have a good head on your shoulders and are carefully planning for your future. I admire that. Keep in mind that this probably will not be your last move, so the decision may not carry all of the weight you are putting on it. I often counsel first time home buyers that they don't have to buy their dream home the first time around because they will have more chances in the future. Andy Andrews says in one of his books that you have not been made with the ability to always make the right decision, but you have the ability to make a decision and then make it right.
While I was in high school, my parents moved out of the house I grew up in and I got most of their furniture. I'm sure I could have bought the stuff 2 or 3 times with the money I spent moving it and storing it. None of it was sentimental and they didn't care whether I kept it or not, so the only attachment for me was that I was young and it felt like I owned something that I would have a hard time getting again. However, if I had it to do again, I would have told them to sell it and enjoy themselves with the money they made on the sale.
I have helped several people re-locate from other parts of the country and many find that the cost of moving a large number of bulky possessions is about what they would have lost on the sale of the items prior to their move. The only difference is the additional headache involved in moving the stuff.
Maybe you could choose a few favorite pieces that keep the memory of your mother alive with you and keep those special pieces, and then sell the remaining items. We have a really active craigslist here, and maybe you'll find someone moving away who is selling their furnishings on this end. A client of mine bought a really nice leather couch and loveseat set and a flat screen TV on craigslist a while back for pennies on the dollar.
I have spent a bit of time in Lincoln and wondered if I could live there as I drove around. Like with any town, there are good parts and bad, and I think I could find the good there if I had to live there. I did see some nice spots. That being said, I choose to live here in Fort Collins within 1/2 mile of a mountain biking trail and in a place where I can be beside a mountain stream in 20 minutes. That is what I need for my head (and I can't deal with heat and humidity).
While CSU may not have much of a PT school, they do have a fantastic OT program, if that interests you at all.
When my wife and I were first married and in our early 20's, we were flat broke with no jobs, but we chose where we wanted to live first and then worked hard to make sure we could stay there. If you determine that there is no failure option, you succeed.
I'm sure with your planning and resources, you will succeed in whatever place you end up.
Sorry if this sounds like a pep talk more than a helpful post.
Good luck with your decision,
Mike Weber
It sounds like you have a good head on your shoulders and are carefully planning for your future. I admire that. Keep in mind that this probably will not be your last move, so the decision may not carry all of the weight you are putting on it. I often counsel first time home buyers that they don't have to buy their dream home the first time around because they will have more chances in the future. Andy Andrews says in one of his books that you have not been made with the ability to always make the right decision, but you have the ability to make a decision and then make it right.
While I was in high school, my parents moved out of the house I grew up in and I got most of their furniture. I'm sure I could have bought the stuff 2 or 3 times with the money I spent moving it and storing it. None of it was sentimental and they didn't care whether I kept it or not, so the only attachment for me was that I was young and it felt like I owned something that I would have a hard time getting again. However, if I had it to do again, I would have told them to sell it and enjoy themselves with the money they made on the sale.
I have helped several people re-locate from other parts of the country and many find that the cost of moving a large number of bulky possessions is about what they would have lost on the sale of the items prior to their move. The only difference is the additional headache involved in moving the stuff.
Maybe you could choose a few favorite pieces that keep the memory of your mother alive with you and keep those special pieces, and then sell the remaining items. We have a really active craigslist here, and maybe you'll find someone moving away who is selling their furnishings on this end. A client of mine bought a really nice leather couch and loveseat set and a flat screen TV on craigslist a while back for pennies on the dollar.
I have spent a bit of time in Lincoln and wondered if I could live there as I drove around. Like with any town, there are good parts and bad, and I think I could find the good there if I had to live there. I did see some nice spots. That being said, I choose to live here in Fort Collins within 1/2 mile of a mountain biking trail and in a place where I can be beside a mountain stream in 20 minutes. That is what I need for my head (and I can't deal with heat and humidity).
While CSU may not have much of a PT school, they do have a fantastic OT program, if that interests you at all.
When my wife and I were first married and in our early 20's, we were flat broke with no jobs, but we chose where we wanted to live first and then worked hard to make sure we could stay there. If you determine that there is no failure option, you succeed.
I'm sure with your planning and resources, you will succeed in whatever place you end up.
Sorry if this sounds like a pep talk more than a helpful post.
Good luck with your decision,
Mike Weber
Thanks, man. It likely won't be my last move, but if I happen to end up hating the place I move to and move somewhere else, I then have to wait another year for residency, which is another year I could have spent in the pursuit of my degrees. I'm not a spring chicken, I'm in a bit of a rush with that.
Maybe I'm a bit oblivious, but I feel like everyone is overstating the cost of moving my furniture. My assumption was that in total, it would cost me 3-5 thousand to move. One way or the other I drive a really small car, and am going to have to have a friend drive a Uhaul as well. My car... Fits nothing.
Thanks, man. It likely won't be my last move, but if I happen to end up hating the place I move to and move somewhere else, I then have to wait another year for residency, which is another year I could have spent in the pursuit of my degrees. I'm not a spring chicken, I'm in a bit of a rush with that.
Maybe I'm a bit oblivious, but I feel like everyone is overstating the cost of moving my furniture. My assumption was that in total, it would cost me 3-5 thousand to move. One way or the other I drive a really small car, and am going to have to have a friend drive a Uhaul as well. My car... Fits nothing.
I think Mike gave you some very sound advice! I'm not sure why you don't think you are young....22 is young! My husband and I have made 5 major moves in the last 14 years. The first 4 we didn't take much of anything with us, just what fit in a very small uhaul truck. Mostly, we made that decision because we didn't have much that worth anything. However, our last major move, from Colorado to Oregon, we actually had relatively new furniture. We had just completely furnished our home in the 2 years prior. So we thought we should take it since we spent thousands of dollars on it. So we contracted a moving company. That move cost us about $6,000 to move 1 living room set (couch, loveseat, 2 end tables, 1 coffee table), 1 small dining room set, 1 bedroom set (queen sleigh bed, 2 chest of drawers, 2 nightstands), 1 42" tv, 1 double bed with simple frame, and a few misc. items. I think we probably spent a total of $10K on all of that furniture combined. We rented a house here in Oregon for almost a year before we bought. Once we bought a house, we realized all of our furniture was way too big for it (we had a newer construction home in CO and bought an older home in OR). The problem is, between the move and the home purchase, we just don't have money to buy furniture so we live with it. Our bedroom set is divided between 2 rooms. Our livingroom is wall to wall furniture. I hate it! My point is, we would have been much happier selling our new furniture, for a slight loss, rather than spending the $6K to move it and then ultimately hating it and wanting to replace it.
So, my advice, like Mike's, is to take the few pieces that mean something to you, or that you think would be really hard to replace, and sell the rest. Save yourself the $3-5K you estimate it will take to move it all. After all, you will be a college student and probably end up moving residences on more than one occasion (during my 5 year tenure at CSU, I moved 5 times). There's a plethora of decent used stuff out there that you can buy to furnish your place.
I would also get estimates on the price to move it all if you are dead set on keeping it. Our move was just under 1,000 miles. Your move, from NJ to CO, would be rougly double. I also had an uncle who worked for the moving company we hired, so we got a deal. Of course, if you are planning on doing it all yourself, it will be cheaper, but based on what you've said you have, I think it would be difficult to fit it all into 1 uhaul. You might also look into PODS, especially if you anticipate storing stuff.
Ultimately you have to decide what's best for you. I understand your concern about gaining residency, especially if you have to relocate more than once. My suggestion would be to take a scouting trip to both locations, even though it will cut into your money a bit. You really need to see both places, and see how different they are. If you were considering two very similar cities, it might be easier. Take 2 weeks and travel to each. It's the best way to decide how you will like an area. One may sound perfect on paper, but once you get there, you may immediately feel it's not for you.
I think Mike gave you some very sound advice! I'm not sure why you don't think you are young....22 is young! My husband and I have made 5 major moves in the last 14 years. The first 4 we didn't take much of anything with us, just what fit in a very small uhaul truck. Mostly, we made that decision because we didn't have much that worth anything. However, our last major move, from Colorado to Oregon, we actually had relatively new furniture. We had just completely furnished our home in the 2 years prior. So we thought we should take it since we spent thousands of dollars on it. So we contracted a moving company. That move cost us about $6,000 to move 1 living room set (couch, loveseat, 2 end tables, 1 coffee table), 1 small dining room set, 1 bedroom set (queen sleigh bed, 2 chest of drawers, 2 nightstands), 1 42" tv, 1 double bed with simple frame, and a few misc. items. I think we probably spent a total of $10K on all of that furniture combined. We rented a house here in Oregon for almost a year before we bought. Once we bought a house, we realized all of our furniture was way too big for it (we had a newer construction home in CO and bought an older home in OR). The problem is, between the move and the home purchase, we just don't have money to buy furniture so we live with it. Our bedroom set is divided between 2 rooms. Our livingroom is wall to wall furniture. I hate it! My point is, we would have been much happier selling our new furniture, for a slight loss, rather than spending the $6K to move it and then ultimately hating it and wanting to replace it.
So, my advice, like Mike's, is to take the few pieces that mean something to you, or that you think would be really hard to replace, and sell the rest. Save yourself the $3-5K you estimate it will take to move it all. After all, you will be a college student and probably end up moving residences on more than one occasion (during my 5 year tenure at CSU, I moved 5 times). There's a plethora of decent used stuff out there that you can buy to furnish your place.
I would also get estimates on the price to move it all if you are dead set on keeping it. Our move was just under 1,000 miles. Your move, from NJ to CO, would be rougly double. I also had an uncle who worked for the moving company we hired, so we got a deal. Of course, if you are planning on doing it all yourself, it will be cheaper, but based on what you've said you have, I think it would be difficult to fit it all into 1 uhaul. You might also look into PODS, especially if you anticipate storing stuff.
Ultimately you have to decide what's best for you. I understand your concern about gaining residency, especially if you have to relocate more than once. My suggestion would be to take a scouting trip to both locations, even though it will cut into your money a bit. You really need to see both places, and see how different they are. If you were considering two very similar cities, it might be easier. Take 2 weeks and travel to each. It's the best way to decide how you will like an area. One may sound perfect on paper, but once you get there, you may immediately feel it's not for you.
All things considered, I can probably reduce my furniture down to:
1 bed set
2 couches
1 computer desk
Paintings/televisions/3 tables
2 chairs
I didn't even think about having to move multiple times once I'm already in a place. Is it difficult to stay in the same place for multiple leases? I'm looking to stay wherever I end up for the duration of college, whether I feel I can find a nicer place or not. I've never rented before, I'm not sure how easy the process is. I simply assumed I'd be able to pay the entirety of the lease upfront for the 4-5 years I'd be in CSU.
I would be moving it myself. My best friend has offered to drive the moving truck, in exchange for me paying for his plane ticket back. He's 6'4, 230 pounds and I'm 6'3, 215. We have the typical Jersey live in the gym body type. I think we'll be able to move the furniture, especially given that most of it breaks apart into pieces. I'll buy a trolley as well.
The difficult part is simply in the fact that when this home sells, I have no home. It's tough to schedule things with that in mind.
All things considered, I can probably reduce my furniture down to:
1 bed set
2 couches
1 computer desk
Paintings/televisions/3 tables
2 chairs
I didn't even think about having to move multiple times once I'm already in a place. Is it difficult to stay in the same place for multiple leases? I'm looking to stay wherever I end up for the duration of college, whether I feel I can find a nicer place or not. I've never rented before, I'm not sure how easy the process is. I simply assumed I'd be able to pay the entirety of the lease upfront for the 4-5 years I'd be in CSU.
I would be moving it myself. My best friend has offered to drive the moving truck, in exchange for me paying for his plane ticket back. He's 6'4, 230 pounds and I'm 6'3, 215. We have the typical Jersey live in the gym body type. I think we'll be able to move the furniture, especially given that most of it breaks apart into pieces. I'll buy a trolley as well.
The difficult part is simply in the fact that when this home sells, I have no home. It's tough to schedule things with that in mind.
Pairing it down to that, it sounds completely reasonable to move yourself, especially considering your age and the fact that you have a helper.
However, I would strongly caution you against paying 4-5 years of rent upfront. As someone who has both rented many homes/apts/etc over the years (I think I've lived in 11 or so rentals and owned 2 homes), as well as been a landlord, that's pretty risky on your part. Even if everything goes well, you don't want to be stuck in a lease that long. Things change in life and part of renting a home vs. buying is the ability to move at the end of a lease. If you are wanting to stay in the same place for 4-5 years, I would advice buying (but still rent for the first 6 mo. to year to ensure you want to live there for a while). The other big concern I would have with paying rent up front like that is that you never know what will happen on your landlords end. I'm sure it's not as prevalent in Ft. Collins as other parts of the country right now, but many landlords are facing foreclosure. If you happen to get stuck with one of those landlords, you are out a lot of cash! I just wouldn't risk it.
I think you are worrying too much about the time frame between selling your home and renting a new place. All homeowners face this when putting a home up for sale unless they have the funds to put down for a new home before the existing one sells. When we sold our home in CO and moved here to OR, we had 2 weeks to find a rental for us (3 pets also). We did it. Sure, it was stressful, but what part of moving isn't. As others have stated, worse case scenario is that your house sells in NJ and you have to live in an extended stay motel for a few weeks until you can secure housing. Since you are considering areas outside of the standard college blocks, it will be easier. Don't worry about it so much! You are young and if you really want to make it happen, you will find a way. If you don't, you will find an excuse (sorry, couldn't help throwing in one of my favorite sayings there). Good luck!
The OP is getting a lot of advice from the "do what you want while you're young" crowd--most of them people that grew up and practiced that philosophy in economic times much less hostile than they are now. Personally, I think that is bad advice for young people today. The most important thing for the OP is to get the best education that he can for the most reasonable cost--especially in the OP's case because, as he states, he is on his own with no cushion to fall back on. From what he has said, he seems to be trying to bend his education around where he wants to live while attending college. That's bass ackwards, in my view.
I happen to think that CSU is a very good school, but it may not be the right fit for the disciplines that he wants to study. University of Nebraska may or may not fit the OP's needs, either.
The OP also asked about Albuquerque, presumably thinking about attending UNM. UNM, like CSU, is a pretty good school for a lot of disciplines--for the OP's, I don't know. I do think that the OP would be in for a severe culture shock in Albuquerque. Its very Hispanic-oriented culture can be disquieting for people not used to the New Mexico culture. (And, for the uninitiated, the native New Mexican Hispanic culture--especially in the northern half of the state, including Albuquerque--is much different than the other more immigrant-driven Hispanic cultures found in other parts of the United States.)
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