Anyone got tips/advice for relocating to another state? (CA to VA)

[240ZRX]

In 1988 I moved from NYC to VA for another job (coach football) and initially it was like moving to the slow motion zone. Cost of living was much lower (like CA, NY was extremely expensive) but if you own a home in CA and sell it, you will have more $$$ when you get to VA (especially the Norfolk area) Norfolk is a Navy town/area, but the cost of living will be lower then where you are now.

 

Cars and inspections vary from area to area. In Northern VA (close to VA) they have both visual/emissions. Where I am in VA (Winchester area) it is only visual.

 

Antique plate staus says that antique cars only have to be in "Inspectable

Condition". So they do not have to be inspected on a yearly basis. Also personal property tax (cars, boats, motorcycles) recieve tax assistance from the state, so you are not going to be taken over the coals so to speak. Antique cars even if they are appraised at mucho $$$ are only taxed by their blue book value ex: I have a 64 galaxie light weight that I only pay 25.00 in tax, and I 72 240Z SBC that is appraised at 18K that I pay 20.00.

 

You should get a real estate website from VA and look at the prices from the Norfolk area.

 

I have been here since 1988 and find it is okay. depends on what you are looking for, and hat you will miss from CA.

 

If you wife has a job or can get one, hell go, and leave the stress behind. Just have most of your ducks lined up in VA before you go.

[Guest norm[T12SDSUD]]

I think Mike gave you some great advice!!

 

Do like Orlando Bloom in the movie Elizabethtown and TAKE YOUR TIME driving across country. You may never get the opportunity to do it again until you are too old to really enjoy it all!!

 

Like Mike said. "MAKE IT AN ADVENTURE!!"

[Pop N Wood]

Maybe chiming in a bit late, but I have made enough cross country moves that I have no idea why anyone bothers renting a truck and moving themselves. As this thread shows when you include all the costs the big moving companies are not much more than driving yourself. But this way you get to avoid a cross country trip in some POS, massively uncomfortable rental truck.

 

Looks like I will be the odd man out and caution you about getting rid of too much stuff. By all means get rid of stuff you absolutely are not going to use or needs replacing anyway, but remember you are still going to need household items on this coast. In a move the money disappears faster than you can imagine and the last thing you want is to add the discomfort of a house with no funiture to all the stresses of relocating.

 

Also keep in mind you what you are doing rates about an 8.5 out of 10 on the life stress-O-meter. Probably somewhere just short of facing a prison sentence. So make sure you and your honey take some time for yourselves and each other. The petty arguments and stresses are just beginning to mount, and will continue for the next year or so, so remember to take time to remind yourself why you are doing this together.

[Guest bastaad525]

Pop N Wood - you are absolutely right... this whole thing HAS been incredibly stressful... my wife is breaking out in some kinda rash, and I'm wasting away before her eyes, 15 lbs lost in the last week or so, even though I'm still eating my normal daily amount of junk food

 

about getting rid of stuff, mostly we're just getting rid of furniture. None of it is essential stuff. First off, since we're actualy moving in with someone else as roomates (renting one room in a two bedroom apartment), the person we're moving it with already has the living room furnished. So for now, we just need furniture for our own room. As Tim pointed out... it will actually be CHEAPER to replace one bedrooms worth of furniture than to spend $2000+ to have it shipped or haul it out ourselves. As far as the rest of the apartment... well our couches were hand me downs and weren't in great condition even when we got them, now they have 8 years more of butt-wear on them , the rest of the stuff is cheap Ikea furniture that can all be replaced very easily and cheaply, again, far cheaper than it would actually cost to ship the stuff out. Nothing we're getting rid of, that we can tell, is really 'essential'. Stuff we're still taking with us are: the microwave, silverware, dishes, pots and pans, vacuum, stuff like that. Stuff we know we'll need and can easily fit in our car or ship.

 

We figure on getting a new matress set, a dresser, and a TV stand when we get there, and that's about it until the time comes for us to move out and get our own place.

[Mikelly]

and ya did catch the whole going to Portsmouth thing this time right?

 

 

I'll See ya in Fredericksburg...

 

Kids...

 

Welcome to Vagina....

Mike

[Guest bastaad525]

hey... I just found out that if we settle for slightly smaller boxes, 24x24x24 inches instead of 24x24x36, we pay like half as much!!! Instead of $90 to ship it's more like $45.... so... half as much cost for way more than just half the space... that's like 1/3 less space no? My math skills getting kinda rusty

 

OH the great thing is that the smaller boxes can still weigh up to 70 lbs w/o increasing the cost!

 

So anyways we picked up a few of those smaller boxes, gonna see what we can fit for now... worse comes to worse the nearest fedex is right down the street so we can head back for bigger ones.

 

 

 

Mikelly - what the heck is so funny

[Guest norm[T12SDSUD]]

Hey that's great man!! I didn't think about a 24X24X24..but I'm glad you did!!

 

Money saved is MONEY EARNED!!!

 

Can't wait to read your cross country adventure!!!

[JMortensen]

One more thing about shipping. I don't know who you're using, but if its UPS go to an actual UPS location, NOT the UPS Store. The UPS store has about 100% markup on shipping charges. I use FedEx Ground exclusively now. They used to suck (lost packages, incompetent drivers, etc), but they're cheaper than UPS and they've gotten MUCH more reliable in the past few years. You can sign up for a FedEx account online and print your own labels then just drop the packages off at a local drop off location. Don't have to own a business to have an account, no yearly fees or anything like that. It's a good option IMO.

[ToplessZ]

Sounds to me like between the two vehicles you should be able to fit most of your stuff. Sell or give away the rest. With the money you save on movers and or equipment to do so you could buy a new bed and table. Also think about shipping a few boxes via greyhound for cheap and then haul the rest between your cars. Greyhound will ship quite large normally unshippable items to be picked up at the nearest greyhound station. I love the east coast only problem for me is the winters but I still love it. I wish I was there right now instead of down south in the uncultured area of Cleveland, TN

[Guest bastaad525]

yeah I'll be using fedex, and will be dealing with them directly thru 1-800-go-fedex, and having them pick up from our house as opposed to dropping the stuff off. Or if not there is an actual Fed Ex not too much farther than the Fedex Kinko's we went to.