Moving options help?

[Parrothead]

Ok, so I have a new job (yay), it's full-time (yay), but the minimum commute is longer than I like (boo). So I am planning on moving in about 5 months, partly because of commute, and partly because I'm 26 and want to move out of my parent's basement already.

So: I want to move, and I have a few options.

1) The company I work for occasionally has apartments available. I could put my name on the list and get one (eventually).
Upsides: No rent, and the only utilities are phone, cable/satellite, and internet.
Downside: comes with a pay cut (down to minimum wage), I do not know if it comes furnished (I think not), I don't know what appliances I get, if any. I do k\not know where the apartment will be (as in the one that comes up when I', next could be on the other side of Atlanta). No pets. If I leave the company for whatever reason, I have 72 hours to vacate.

2) Rent an apartment.
Upsides: My own place (more or less). Can get one that allows pets. Usually comes with a furnished kitchen.
Downsides: Rent+ utilities eats half of a month's pay.

2a) get a roommate
Upsides: lower rent & utilities.
Downsides: I have to live with another person.

3) Wait longer, save more and buy a condo/townhome
Upsides:
Downsides:

4) wait longer and buy a house
Upsides:
Downsides:

(I know nothing about the advantages and disadvantages of buying).

Any advice (or things that you know that I don't?)

[Andara Bledin]

If you don't have a plan, buying is probably a bit premature.

On that same note, having a company apartment will tie you to the company, which can be both good and bad, but I suspect leans more to the bad.

As for rent eating up about half of your take-home pay, that's actually fairly typical.

Since you have marked this out for a future move as opposed to right away, you can take advantage of that to not jump at the first thing you find.

Figure out what your needs are: close stores? on-site laundry? furnished? internet-ready? etc...

Figure out what your deal-breakers are: no pets? run-down building? too many units? too many families? no assigned parking? doesn't have gas hookups?

In the meantime, save up at least three month's worth of rent, plus what extras you think you'll need for getting your utilities hooked up. Find and bookmark some online rental property sites (there are a lot out there, and some require registration while others can be worked around).

That said, if you're in a position to buy property, now that the bubble's burst, it's a fairly safe option. Just make sure you have a solid real estate agent that is willing to work for you to get the best deal and that you actually want to live in the area you end up buying in.

Also, some things that would be deal-breakers in a rental situation might not have the same weight when buying; As an example, I wouldn't move into a rental that didn't have laundry facilities on the property, at a minimum. But my house doesn't have laundry hookups, which is something that can and will be corrected in the future.

^-.-^

[csquared]

One of the pluses you have on option #1 is that you have some time to look at the company. In five month's time, you may find out that while their pay is good, you don't want to be their customer. Also, do you have to take the first thing that comes available? Could you hold out for something closer?

The rule of thumb is that your housing should not cost more than 25% of you take home pay. Would the pay cut be more than 25%? How does it compare to rent prices in the area?

Depending on where you are buying, you can find some great deals. Not long ago, I saw an add for a 4 bed, 2.5 bath with attached garage in Decature for $65,000. From everything I saw, it was a nice neighborhood. The down side on buying is that you have to take care of it, mow the lawn, rake the leaves, clean the gutters, paint the outside, repairs. It all takes time, or money to pay someone else to do it. I am so far behind on my house, but I am still glad I bought.

Also, before you look into buying, check you credit score. Can you get a mortgage. They are not handing them out right and left like they use to. Get pre-approved before you go shopping.

If you would like to PM me more details on the area, I will see if I know anyone in those area and get you more details.

PS. If you need furniture, I have a twin bed and a kitchen table w/chairs I'll sell cheap. the Wife wants them out of the basement.

[Parrothead]

Ok, so i can pick which apartment I get with the company, and I'm only losing about $300 a month with the pay cut, however it's a self-storage place and the apartment is on site.


(And thanks for the offer of furniture, but I have a queen bed, two twin beds and a dining set that seats 12. There's a reason my parents want me out.)

[csquared]

$300/month is a sweet deal. I would put up with a lot of short comings so I could stock pile my savings.

Seeing as you work for a self-storage company, I think you could find a place to store that extra furniture.

[Andara Bledin]

Having a place to live on-site while managing a storage facility is actually very handy. Plus, the price is hard to beat. But some downsides are that you'll never really be 'off the clock' while there and everybody knows where to find you.

^-.-^

[taxguykarl]

$300/month is a sweet deal. I would put up with a lot of short comings so I could stock pile my savings.

Agreed. I've paid more than that for dumps in ghettos.

[PepperElf]

On that same note, having a company apartment will tie you to the company, which can be both good and bad, but I suspect leans more to the bad.

I'm unfamiliar with company apartments other than military housing.

Would a company have any legal rights to inspect the apartment etc? would what they find in the apartment affect the job?

how would that affect tenant laws?

[Parrothead]

AFAIK, I would be in an apartment at a property I don't work at, so I would be off the clock. Also, I think they either don't inspect the apartment while I'm there, or I get the usual 48 hrs notice. I'll ask.

[Parrothead]

Also, I get paid on the 7th and 22nd of the month. I don't know if that affects anything.

[Andara Bledin]

I'd be surprised if the laws regarding tenants in company housing are much different than regular tenancy. As such, local laws would prevail.

Being at another site makes it less convenient but does make it easier to be off the job.

^-.-^

[Parrothead]

My job is a floater, I'm at three properties this week and two next week. I mostly cover other people's days off.

[Jester]

This does not sound like a "career" job, so I think you should be very wary about buying any residence, unless you are sure you want to work for this company for the next 10-40 years.

Company housing: it has a lot of plusses, but the downside is that your company is in effect your landlord. This can be difficult, perhaps even problematic, in many ways. Also, you have no idea how decent the company apartments are. They could be complete shitholes, or very basic bare bones crap. Beyond that, if you lose your job, you have very little time to find a new place.

Personally I would advise getting a rented apartment either on your own or with a roommate. Yes, it has its down sides, but I think it has more positives than negatives. But of course, you need to decide what is right for you.

[PepperElf]

that's what i was rather thinking jester.

that and ... i'm somewhat thinking of "the grapes of wrath" where the workers ended up having to pay the company for lodging, food, and ended up pretty much *owing* the company.

now obviously it's not going to be THAT crazy, but... there's some things to think about, like hidden costs. do repairs come out of the paycheck for example? do they fine you for any violations? are the neighbors also employees? can neighbors affect your job at work if they dislike you?

[Andara Bledin]

Another option that I didn't see mentioned is to look for a place that's just renting a room.

Nekojin did that for a while. The owners of the place had taken a 4-bedroom house, given all of the bedroom doors their own locks, and added a second fridge so that each tenant could have half of a fridge to keep their own food.

You end up having to divide utilities (if they charge for them), but since you're sharing common areas, you often end up with much lower rent.

Unfortunately, that won't leave you with a place to set up your dining room set, but you'd run into the same problem with any apartment that wasn't a major expense as well, unless you installed it in the bedroom and took to sleeping on top of it.

^-.-^