Handling a Cross Country Move? 188
Tarin.n asks: "For the past 2 years, I have worked remotely from the East Coast for a Silicon Valley company. The company is now considering moving me to the west coast, so that I can be closer to their headquarters. I'm trying to make a list of questions to ask of the company as we discuss this transition, as well as a list of items to take care of personally for such a move. What experience have others on Slashdot had with a cross-country move? Specifically, what should I ask and watch out for?"
True cost of living change? (Score:5, Insightful)
Be aware of the cost of living differences between two markets (even within the same metropolis on occasion!).
Re:True cost of living change? (Score:2)
In that same vein, make sure to ask them about assitance in finding housing, if you haven't done so for yourself already. Some companies work with local realtors to help find employees affordable housing in the areas they are moving to. If the company doesn't, ask them to look into it for you. And make sure they pay for the full move.
Re:True cost of living change? (Score:2, Insightful)
I've moved cross country a few times, and one of the big non-material things you have to consider is whether you're the type of person who can live in a new
TAXES!!! (Score:2)
Keep this in mind when asking for salary adjustments.
Re:True cost of living change? (Score:2, Informative)
From the BLS ( http://www.bls.gov/cpi/cpifaq.htm#Question_4 [bls.gov])
Is the CPI a cost-of-living index?
"The CPI frequently is called a cost-of-living index, but it differs in importan
Re:True cost of living change? (Score:4, Interesting)
In moving to the Bay Area or Los Angeles, you can be assured that your destination isn't depressing, but it will look horribly expensive. Food's actually cheaper (and higher quality) thanks to intense competition, but housing makes up for all that and more. However, the fact that you won't have to pay much for heat helps a lot. Heat in the east is more expensive even than air conditioning in Los Angeles. Real estate taxes are high, but lower than you might think based on the value of the homes. A $150,000 house in the Pittsburgh city proper actually has higher taxes than a $428,000 house in Los Angeles.
I'd recommend checking out http://www.craigslist.org/ [craigslist.org] and http://www.realtor.com/ [realtor.com] for your destination city to get a handle on the cost of living adjustment. Check out the housing sections for Craigslist.
Don't find your mover via Craigslist, though. The one I eventually used was unprofessional and did a poor job with my stuff. The actual worth of your stuff is likely to be very close to the cost of moving it; unfortunately, that's not true of the cost of re-buying it new. In other words, if you have a desk that you bought for $1,000 you'll be lucky to sell it for $200, but moving it will cost $300. If you're patient and can find something equivalent for $300 at your destination, then you're better off selling your stuff than moving it. If it's something that will be difficult or expensive to find at your destination, then you're better off moving it.
If you're driving your own car, ignore the advice I saw elsewhere and cram as much in it as possible. I took most of my computer equipment that way, and boy was I happy to have it before I got the rest of my stuff!
In the end, unless you have really strong ties where you are, you'll probably like the west coast more than the east. The cold-weather East, at least to my eyes, has been an exceptionally drab and depressing experience and I will be very glad to leave it.
Good luck!
D
Having done this recently . . . (Score:4, Informative)
#1. Don't use U-Haul. The web pages about disaster experiences aren't exagerations. Your "reservation" is issued automatically, without even a cursory check as to the availability of trucks. They finally found me one an entire day late--90 miles from where I should ahve received one. The average age of their fleet is significantly older than all of their competitors.
#2. Throw it away. Unless you're absolutely certain that you'll actually use it, toss it. Then do it again. Then toss everything, and only take out what you *really* need. Then throw a bunch more away.
#3. Don't use U-haul. Few people have had positive experiences with them., and the horror stories are common.
#4. Avoid U-haul at all costs.
#5. Be *entirely* packed and living out of suitcases and a couple of plates a full week before you leave. You *will* run over.
#6. Did I mention not to use U-haul?
#7. Film your old rental housing for when your former landlord comes up with "interesting" charges. Insist that the landlord do a final walkthrough with you--but the place needs to be empty for this.
#8. Most importantly, don't use U-haul.
#9. If using a rental truck and there are any mountains in your path, or even those little bumps that the easterners fancy to be mountains, you want a diesel and not a gas engine. The difference in fuel consumption is significant, but the diesels are much better on grades.
#10. Don't use U-haul.
#11. Consider alternate starting and stopping points. Rates are based upon the amount of trucks going each way. By going 60 miles further east to pick up a truck and overshooting Las Vegas for Orange county, I knocked more than a third off the rental price. Everyone was leaving my part of PA, whle everyone goes *to* Las Vegas, and everyone is fleeing California. There's a discount for bringing a truck *to* California, and a surcharge for leaving one in Vegas.
#12. Pay the damage waive ron the truck. Really. It's a dumb move on a car, but you're driving something big that's easy to bump and scratch. I'm, umm, well ahead of the game on this one. It also helps when the equipment malfunctions and damages itself; there's no issue of them charging you (On my previous move, the hitch failed on myU-haul trailer and rammed the truck, ruining much of the equipment on the tongue).
Now, for an unfortunate, sad, fact of life: Only uhaul rents large closed trailers one-way. This is why I ignored my past experience and used them last summer. What I *should* have done was rent a Penske truck and a U-haul trailer, slapped a hitch onto my van (which has Class IV towing), and moved it to the Penske at the house. There hav ebeen many reports of U-haul refusing to hand over trailers to those who show up in competitor's trucks, claiming that that model doesn't appear on their list of approved vehicles (5,000 pound towing capacity needed).
Aside from being over a day late, our u-haul broke down three (3) times. After a thousand miles, it threw the trailer off the hitch. According to the repairman who came out, the hitch was properly attached (besides, we *had* travelled 1,000 miles by then), and couldn't have come off unless the ball was undersized.
Then, coming over the first major downgrade on the Rockies, the transmission *selector*, not the transmission, broke, leaving me stuck in thrird gear. Massive damage to the brakes (completely smoked), and the truck sp0ent a week in a Uhaul depot waiting for a part (again, old trucks).
Once it was ready, it turned out to be massively overweight, and we had to rent a Penske to offload 5,000 lbs. With the U-haul and Penske approximately equally loaded, we attached the trailer to the Penske. Even with the trailer, it would blow past the U-haul, even uphill.
Finally, approaching Vegas, the uhaul started overheating. We ended up dumping it in Vegas, as it wouldn't have made it to Orange county, anyway.
hawk, who never wants to move again.
Re:Having done this recently . . . (Score:3, Informative)
I prefer to pay professionals a professional rate for moving. When I moved out of my condo and my broad moved out of her apartment, we hired professionals to hit both our pads as well as both our storage sheds, and move everything to our house. They did an amazing job, but for the thousands I spent I'm assuming most people wouldn't have bothered.
Re:Having done this recently . . . (Score:2)
Nope. Go-daddy'd.
They somehow managed to foul up my direct credit card charge almost every month. I'm not sure when they stopped serving it up, just that they charged me for months afterwards. Now they want me to commit to a year in return for not charging me for restoring from tape, so I'm looking for a new host. (And, I need to get around to filing a compliant with the attorney general).
hawk
Re:Having done this recently . . . (Score:2)
Re:Having done this recently . . . (Score:2)
Re:Having done this recently . . . (Score:2)
My wife and I rented a pair of U-Haul trucks (one 17-foot and one 24-foot) and two car trailers for our move from Minneapolis to Atlanta in September 2004, and while we did get down here intact 2 1/2 days later, the move was not without issues (m
Re: #9 (U-Haul Trucks and geologic bumps) (Score:2)
My wife's little truck didn't have an issue with the grade, and it doesn't seem like much at all when driving a car, but the big one was going walking speed for quite a while on the uphill side of the big hill, and it was an interesting ride down the other side. At least they had a couple of side ramps for runaway trucks in case there were any issues.
Driving a 24-foot truck for a
Re:Having done this recently . . . (Score:2, Informative)
I have also had repeated lousy experiences with them. There is a good chance you will not get your truck/trailer when or where you want it, don't let a silly little thing like a reservation convince you otherwise. I've never had a problem with a trailer, but the quality of the trucks is consistently dismal, especially if you get them from third-party agents ("Joe's Heavy Equipment Rental, Sandwich Shop and U-Haul") as opposed to a U-Haul com
U-Haul shoddy equipment is right (Score:2)
Only a knucklehead would drive a U-haul across... (Score:2)
Renting a U-haul trailer would make more sense.
But...
The best solution is to get rid of all your stuff, especially the big stuff. If it still won't fit in your car, rent a minivan. Or buy a cheap van or pickup, and sell it when you reach your destination.
Re:Having done this recently . . . (Score:2)
You had me confused for a spell there - I thought you were telling me to rent the truck and then donate the truck!!!
ABF U-Pack mostly kicks ass (Score:2)
You stuff it. Crisp new boxes are highly suggested because...
You put up a super-awkward barrier to partition the truck. Commercial goods will go behind your stuff. This barrier is some awful cardboard-and-steel contraption that you jack to pressure-fit against the sides of the truck.
The truck goe
There's more difference than salary calculators... (Score:2)
OTOH, if the housing bubble hasn't burst, you can do what most Californians have been doing for the last several years -- buying any property they can, with an interest-on
Re:So true! (Score:2)
And, lessee, you wanted to shop at the same stores you used to but couldn't find them so did your shopping at (expensive) downtown stores, you wanted Texas-style meals so used tourist guides and found that good bar-b-que at a restaurant listed in a tourist guide cost ya forty bucks a plate . . . blah, blah, blabbety, blah.
I have no fucking patience at all for idiots who move to New York, ignore all local assets, then try to live "jes like back home" where real estate co
Beware the Rockies (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Beware the Rockies (Score:3, Funny)
stuff to ask (Score:3, Insightful)
- Bump in salary if new location is more expensive than old location (salary calculator [homefair.com])
- Assistance with finding a house or apartment
More important is how this will affect your family. Being single will make the decision easier, but being hitched with kids will make this truly a life-changing event.
Re:stuff to ask (Score:2)
Sounds good to me, I wouldn't mind 360k a year!
Get it in writing! (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Get it in writing! (Score:4, Informative)
HR departments are also aware of the statistics on failed relocations. They tend to fail within the first six months, they're more likely to fail with employees with fairly short time with the company (I think it's something like 30% among employees with less than 6 months at the company), etc.
Re:Get it in writing! (Score:2)
I did stick it out for a year, but only just. When they "awarded" me with a 3% raise on a solid year (this was dot-com era), but
Moving goods and furniture (Score:3, Interesting)
As for the rest, pack your bags as though you were going off on a long trip, and ship everything else.
Now, if you can't divest yourself of your current furnishings, or have large, difficult-to-move things that you -must- retain, you're pretty-much boned from the start. Being mobile in the modern world means travelling light, not amassing tons of "stuff," and generally being willing to lose it all and move on.
Re:Moving goods and furniture (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Moving goods and furniture (Score:2)
Many will set you up in a corp. apt. for a while as you find out the area. Give that a couple of months to figure out where you want to live, what the comutes are like, etc. I wouldn't bother to rent a place - as that just sets you up for having to move AGAIN, find where you want to live, and move in.
That said - they should pay for a house hunt
Re:Moving goods and furniture (Score:2)
I don't think that mileage is deductible or reimbursable.
Re:Moving goods and furniture (Score:2)
Oh - and if things are "deductible" make sure that they "gross up" which means they figure out it will cost you 1000 dollars, so they "pay" you 1000 dollars so they can deduct the 500 dollars in taxes - and you get your 1000. Trust me - a good relo department knows how to play all of the corr
Re:Moving goods and furniture (Score:2)
Whoosh! Swing and a miss!
Pre-move (Score:2)
Other than that... ask your employer for reputable realtors/apartment managers in your new area, as well as
If you do decide to do it.... (Score:5, Insightful)
Insurance... Verify with your home owners/renters insurance that your stuff is covered during the move... My GF's mother is an insurance agent and figured out that the stuff that is offered by the moving company (PODS, decent experience, except that the stuff was late, due to Katrina) was useless.. We then inquired our home owners, and at least with mine, I was covered.. Otherwise... Your stuff may not be covered during the move..
Do not buy a place right away.. Rent first to learn the area... Make it known that you will be renting.. Otherwise everyone and their cousin will be telling that someone they know is a realestate agent in the area you are moving too..
Order of operations... First, fly out there to pick out a house/apartment.. Same trip/Next trip, stay in new apartment, --buy a new bed--.. Its a new start, might as well start over.. Dont go cheap.. Plus if your stuff shows up late, at least you're not sleeping on the floor.. This was our saving grace..
Make sure you get a decent salray adjustment.. You will spend more money than you think on the move, maybe over budget.. I know I did..
I'm sure others will have good advice...
Re:If you do decide to do it.... (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Elitist prick... (Score:2)
*Plan* for stuff to arrive late or early (Score:2)
Expenses (Score:3, Insightful)
- You stuff moved by professional movers
- Some cash to handle incidentals (rent deposits, hotels, various fees for starting utilities, etc)
If they aren't paying for anything, then get as much money as you can, sell whatever you can part with and stuff all of your crap in a POD (www.pods.com) or something similar.
I wouldn't move for a company unwilling to pay for relocation, unless I was two years out of college and didn't really own anything.
Re:Expenses (Score:2)
If the company is asking you to move, then you should definitely be asking for them to pay for it (moving expenses). Als
moving your car (Score:2, Informative)
Cost of living (Score:2)
Then look into what it will take to live the way *you* want to there. If you're moving from say, NYC to SF, it's probably not drastically different. But if you're moving from somewhere like Augusta or Raleigh (or to some extent Atlanta), and want to live anywhere near the country, or have a decent sized place, you're in for a shock.
Check into transportation issues (parking, mass transit, etc). Consider local laws (gun ownership, ve
Re:Cost of living (Score:2)
This is very true. I've found that these "cost of living" figures don't necessarily accurately represent *your* cost of living change to live the way you want. Average ho
Keep your cars being shipped EMPTY (Score:2)
When the SUV finally arrived (3 weeks later) on the very top and back of a multi-vehicle carrier, RIGHT where it is perched dangerously downward and backward from the auto-freight upper deck, the driver opened my SUV's tail door and all my worldly and precious stuff came crashin
Re:Keep your cars being shipped EMPTY (Score:5, Insightful)
You bring up a point that I needed to address simply to move across the state.
"Do I really NEED this?"
I've moved 4 times in 6 months, its about to become 5. I'm a college student doing work at other schools in the state and the next one will be out to Germany. Each time I've moved I have found things like old computers, empty shell casings, "project enclosures" (old liqor bottles and neat metal boxes, old notes from classes, clothes that don't fit, clothes that I never wear, sex toys from ex's that were angrily thrown somewhere, pots/pans that were totally redundant, glassware (I was living alone and had nearly 150 glasses, mugs, and cups), the list goes on.
The thing is, I donated, recycled, sold, and disposed of nearly 70% of my posessions. I still have the things that have value to me, either useful value or sentimental value, but I don't have all the clutter and the 'stuff'. Open space, and not having a self-stor unit crammed to the gills with scrap is incredibly liberating.
Re:Keep your cars being shipped EMPTY (Score:2)
This is SLASHDOT! News for Nerds, Stuff that Matters.
These PC stuff DO matter to this nerd, dude! My livelyhood... My babies...
You testing my geek-status, aren't ya?
Re:Keep your cars being shipped EMPTY (Score:2)
Our auto-transporter specifically told us to ship empty, or they wouldn't take it. I guess this kind of thing happens all the time.
Mustard will be your biggest problem (Score:5, Interesting)
"With oil or mayo?", asked the person who was making the run.
"Neither. I'd like mustard on my sandwich. Brown if they have it, otherwise yellow is OK."
I swear to God, all conversation stopped and everyone stared at me. These were all people who had grown up in the Philadelphia area, locals for at least 5 genereations.
"Mustard? On a hoagie? You want me to ask them to put mustard on a hoagie?" She sounded like I'd asked for a crunchy frog with a side of anthrax ripple.
Asking for mustard on a sandwich was apparently such an outrageously bizzare concept that, it took me a minute or two to convince them that I was serious about it, and did not want oil or mayo, but mustard. This was such heresey, that one year later, at this same function, this woman's son referred to me as the guy who wanted mustard on his hoagie.
This, in a place where they put mustard on pretzels, and eat it with a straight face.
Your biggest problem won't be computer, work or salary related... it will be cultural.
Re:Mustard will be your biggest problem (Score:2)
Oh yeah, and for all the COL threads. I compared Mobile incomine to LA... 43k here = 80k in LA. Whew. I love watching
Re:Mustard will be your biggest problem (Score:2)
Seriously?
By spring the snow has melted, do uprooted trees magically pop back into place?
Re:Mustard will be your biggest problem (Score:2)
Blizzards are nothing if you use a little common sense, while earthquakes and hurricanes can completely erase your house and everything in it (including you and your family).
No thanks!
Now, here in Atlanta a single snowflake can be dangerous due to the resulting stampedes of people driving to the nearest supermarket in their SUVs to stock up on bread and milk, but that's a whole 'nuther ball game...
Re:Mustard will be your biggest problem (Score:2)
That's just sick :-) :-)
We just paid $500k for a 2 year-old 3000sq ft house (on top of a hill == fantastic sunrise views!) on 10 acres here in MN and I was laughing at my friend back in CT. Looks like you could be laughing equally hard at me
OTOH, if I wanted to extend my commute by another 20 minutes or so, we could have 30+ acres for the same price, so...
At least you didn't ask for a grinder and a pop. (Score:2)
When I was working in Detroit I couldn't get over people calling sodas pop and subs grinders. Being from Florida which seems to have a little of everything I have seemed to have an easier time adapting to different locations than
Re:At least you didn't ask for a grinder and a pop (Score:2)
Salary, housing costs, public transportation issues... all of these things are big picture that you can address ahead of time. It's the little stuff that gets under your skin and will determine wether you are comfortable in your new surroundings or not. Culture shock will be a far greater adjustment than anything else.
I've
Irradiated food (Score:3, Interesting)
I didn't see 28 Days, but I can certainly understand the sentiment. Irradiated food [arserrc.gov] is not only safe, wholesome and nutritious, it is ofter safer, healthier and more nutritious than non-irradiated food, since the spoilage organisms and any human pathogens ha
It's true, anything *different* is a shocker... (Score:3, Interesting)
Other considerations (Score:3, Interesting)
1) Make sure that you are cool with downsizing your place. Not sure where you are coming from, but in almost every case you will get a smaller house/apartment for the same $ out here in Silly Valley.
2) Find out about opportunities and resources to participate in the things that you love to do in your time off of work. In most cases you will find that this area is great for all sorts of pursuits, but make sure.
3) Make sure that you enjoy interacting with an incredibly diverse cultural group of people. This is one of the coolest things about living in California. I have however seen a lot of instances of people that move here from out of state and have trouble relating to the diverse ethnic groups (generally this does not seem to happen with east coast transplants - it seems to be more of middle-america thing). One of my favorite things about the Bay Area is that in most areas you are virtually unlimited in the new types of cuisine you can try on a daily basis. It's kinda cool to be able to eat your way around the world without leaving your own town.
4) Make sure that you like to drive. Unless you are in the middle of SF, public transit is only useful in very specific cases. It just isn't deployed widely enough to be a full time option for many people, so traffic is a part of life. This brings up another related point - when you are plotting out how much more pay you will need in order to make the move, be sure that the increase includes enough to be as close as possible to your office. In California a lot of people are moving farther out into the central part of the state and driving huge distances to get to work due to the availability of (somewhat) cheaper housing. Try not to be one of these people. :-)
All in all, this is a wonderful place to be. Hopefully these items will help you to decide if it will be the right place for you.
Good luck!
Re:Other considerations (Score:3, Informative)
If you do decide to do the move, consider living
deployment isn't the problem (Score:2)
>very specific cases. It just isn't deployed widely enough to be a full
>time option for many people, so traffic is a part of life.
It's not the deployment that's the problem, it's the way the population is spread out. SF is about the only city west of Chicago with dense enfough population for most mass transit to practical.
hawk
Some advice from my experiences (Score:2)
-- While some relocation expenses are tax deductible, a lot aren't. If your company is paying for them, they'll tax you on anything they pay out. Consider asking for a bonus to cover these expenses.
-- With any movers try to get something in writing which guarantees delivery by a certain date with penalties for not making that date. Especially with auto movers. Auto movers made my life a living hell for over a month. During a hectic time such as a relocation, it's just not worth t
Re:Some advice from my experiences (Score:2)
We ended up using T`NT - they did OK, for a decent price. The car arrived on time with only some damage. We lost the front license plate to windshear and I think debris damaged our rear differential, causing it to leak - which led to an expensive repair 6 months later.
So, if you have an expensive car (like, worth more than $10K), make sure they'll pay for shipping, and have it shipped in a closed carrier, and put plastic wrap on it.
Re:Some advice from my experiences (Score:2)
Moving expenses/Money up front (Score:2)
Re:Moving expenses/Money up front (Score:2)
Wow, that's a lot of money. I think it probably depends mostly on if you have a family or not, and how much stuff you have. I've moved across the country many times as a single guy with about a 1-bedroom apartment worth of stuff, and I've cert
If they offer a relocation campany, be careful (Score:2)
They buy it significantly below your asking price.
They do not accept offers with contingencies (ie, if someone wan
just be sure to get them to include (Score:2)
1) Some portion of the price differential on an equivalent home in an equivalent neighborhood. You'd like 100%, but will probably have to settle for 50%, or less, depending on how desperate they are.
2) Home sale and purchase costs. You probably have to pay a realtor on both ends, and you want the company to pay for this.
3) Salary adjustment to the new area.
4) Moving costs paid with a minimum and a maximum. The minimum makes sure you don't get screwed out of the
Re:just be sure to get them to include (Score:2)
First of all, you're pulling up roots, moving across the country. What happens to you if the company lays you off the day after? You're trusting the company not to do this, but what if they get in dire financial straits and effectively have no choice? Are you sure their CFO isn't one of the apparently many
Things I learned (Score:2)
1) Moving fees. Does the firm pay a cash amount or the actual expense. This can come into play in that you might be tempted to cut corners and save some of the cash, or go to town and get the best movers you can find (i.e. who do the packing for you). If you are a busy or disorganized person, you may want the kind of movers who show up and pack everything right out of the closets so you
Relocation companies (Score:2)
If you aren't getting reimbursed, talk to your tax accountant, or get one if you don't already have one. If you're moving more than 60 miles, the expenses are tax deductible -- but not all of them.
Depending on your salary, you may even want to hire a relo company f
Performance / Pay Guarantees (Score:2)
Dateline NBC pointers (Score:2)
Some of the pointers I remember are:
0) find a reputable mover. If unsure:....
1) pack it yourself. The problem is that they charge for materials used... and you'll find yourself paying for two, no three, rolls of bubble wrap being used to wrap your alarm clock.
2) get a binding weight before you sign off on them leaving. A common abuse is to quote a cost at 10,000
Re:Dateline NBC pointers (Score:2)
My POD move went fairly well, but I can give some advice on POD moving.
Oh, How I have experience with this! (Score:2)
2001 Chicago to Dallas
2003 Dallas to Toronto
2004 Toronto to Seattle
Things to watch out for:
1. Cost of Living. You did do a cost of living analysis (including differences in income and other taxes, insurance, housing), right? Because, no amount of relocation assistance (unless it is extreme) will make up for some place you can't afford to live.
2. Moving Expenses. Are they footing the whole bill, or reimburing you to some limit? I've done it both ways, and gett
Re:Oh, How I have experience with this! (Score:2)
Re:Oh, How I have experience with this! (Score:2)
Other than that, sorry, no. :-(
get your cost covered (Score:2)
I recently moved to Finland (from the Netherlands). This was my third international move and I have some experience in this kind of thing by now. Basicallly you are going to run into a number of problems:
- finding an appartment in a place you don't know to which you have limited access until you move there. Sort of a chicken egg problem. You'll need all the help y
It's just a country, not the universe (Score:2)
Living in Silicon Valley to work in software is the reality of the business. Luxury living in exotic locations like Arizona and North Carolina was a 90's excess. If you don't need to be in the location, you
Re:It's just a country, not the universe (Score:2)
You might be surprised to learn that most software is written in-house at various companies and is thus located outside of the "Silicon Valley". I suspect that's also true of retail software -- Redmond ain't in California, for example.
Tips (Score:2)
Moving... OSI Style (Score:2)
The RTT will be high, but that's acceptable. The Interstates have high bandwidth, but U.S. highways often have fewer collisions and hops with nicer food. Make sure you set your TTL high -- frequent hops make collisions less likely.
I suggest using physical private key protection for your cont
See if you can choose "full service" or "cash out" (Score:2)
So ask the company if they offer a cash out choice and how much that would be. Then it is up to you to evaluate how difficult
I've moved once and plan on moving back (Score:2)
If you have a set amount of relocation money, remember that when you get your hands on that money, the IRS is going to tax the hell out of it. It sounds weird, but when your first paycheck is 4500 dollars, including the relocation money, the IRS looks at that and says, "wait a sec! this person is going to make a buttload of money this year!". It turns out that 45% of my relocation bonus went to taxes. I ended up slowly getting out of that debt (went to credit cards), an
Having lived there, AVOID CALIFORNIA (Score:2)
How to move (Score:2)
2. Pack almost everything into storage crates and ship it to the destination city, to be placed in storage.
There are two companies I know of that do this: PODS and DoorToDoor / CityToCity. I went with DoorToDoor, http://www.doortodoor.com/ [doortodoor.com], as they were much cheaper and their containers were smaller, so you could tailor the size of order more closely to the amount of crap you have.
3. Keep back enough stuff to survive on for a few months. Some clothes, a laptop, and so on. M
Strings attached? (Score:2)
So understand what you may be getting into.
Other points:
- Focus on making the move as painless for *you* as possible. I assume you're being moved professionally? Just pack up a few t
Moving on (Score:2)
Much of what you'll experience will depend on the size and age of your employer. Larger, diversified companies that relocate employees as a m
Oh, yeah (Score:2)
Anyway, good luck and send us a postcard.
Re:Prediction: (Score:2)
From what I can tell, there is actually a decent number of people on slashdot who have been in similar situations and would be happy to share the positives and negatives.
Re:Prediction: (Score:2)
Re:Money (Score:3, Insightful)
Be very careful while choosing the moving company. Choose some one who is reputable and reliable, rather than using some one who promises low upfront costs.
My friend moved from west cost to east, a couple of years ago, the moving company said the truck broke down midway, and didn't deliver his goods for 2 months, and when it finally arrived, the truck driver, wouldn't unload, unless he was paid 500$ extra. Moving companies are a big rip off, i
Re:Money (Score:2)
Big movers stink. (Score:2)
In passing along our tale of woe, we've heard similar stories about most of the other major carriers, though. The overriding lesson being that if you use a company along those lines, you have to set it up through a company account. If it's just a single househ
Re:Money (Score:2)
Re:Money (Score:2)
The last time I moved, this helped me to avoid a company that, while offering the best price, had a bad rating due to a bunch of unresolved complaints.
Re:Money (Score:2)
I recently moved from the Los Angeles area to Montana, and was able to work out a deal with the hiring company where they paid up front for the moving truck, and I paid up front for the gas/lodging/meals/Misc expenses and was reimbursed for those later.
As far as moving companies go, I highly recommend ABF U-Pack [upack.com]. They come and drop off a semi trailer at your current home. Yo
Re:Money (Score:2)
Re:Money (Score:2)
Re:My question for you: (Score:2)
Get out of your rut (Score:5, Insightful)
Sometimes, and at least once in every life, you should completely uproot yourself and move on. Better still if you can go to a different country. If you can get your employer to pay for it then that's even better still.
And yes I do have some ties to the old home town. Every now and again I go back and visit my father (mom died a few years back) and I'm glad I got to really see some more of this world. Vacations aren't enough. You have to go out there and live.
Re:My question for you: (Score:2)