Author Topic: Should we move from Town A to Town B?  (Read 3829 times)

Mint Chip

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Should we move from Town A to Town B?
« on: July 23, 2013, 10:25:48 AM »
Hello, all, and thank you for the great help that you gave me a few months ago.  since checking in here, we've implemented SO many changes that have put us on the path to FI -- a long one, but we're finally headed in the right direction, an dhave a real plan to get rid of our debts in just a few years.  The changes we've made thus far include getting rid of the STUFF that is over-running our house, slashing our grocery bill,  and DH got a new job that 1) pays more, and 2) includes some payment toward health benefits.  We are very happy.

But the new job has prompted us to seriously look at our housing situation.  We moved to this town (I'll call it Town A) and bought a house here in late 2008 b/c it was 2.7 miles from DH's job, so he biked a lot and drove when it was icy/pouring, etc., to protect his computer.  We got a great deal on it in a short sale -- our current monthly payment on it (mortgage & taxes) is $975.  It is a 3 br, 1 bath home that is approx 1100 sq ft.

This new job is accessible by public transportation, which is 5 miles from our house, which is also convenient for biking, when the weather permits.  As time goes on, the need for him to go into the office every day will decrease, and he'll be able to work form home often. Yessssssss.

My question revolves around the activities that my kids are involved in/getting into.  We have 3 kids, ages 1 to 8, and since living here, we've found ourselves traveling to a town that is a 20-minute drive from here (Town B), because that town offers many more activities that my kids are interested in and enjoy.  (We homeschool, btw).  So, as you can imagine, our monthly gas expense is through the roof, and we spend a ton of time in the car.  We can't walk to anything from our current house, and although DH bikes, the roads around here aren't safe for kids to ride on (curvy, 2-lane country roads w/no sidewalks).  We are still looking to change our current family vehicle (a minivan), but are wondering whether it' s worth it to move to Town B, since we're always driving there, and sell this house. 

Of course, homes and taxes in Town B are more expensive, but, if we get a place in the right location, we'd be able to walk to the library, post office, some stores, and other activities my kids are involved in (there are sidewalks in this other town), significantly cutting down our time in the car, and our gas expense.  Also, Town B has a reputation for raising taxes frequently and in large increments, and it's not uncommon for people to move out of the town after their kids finish going through the school system.  Public transportation would be around a 20-minute drive from Town B, for the few times that DH would need to go into the office.

If we do decide to sell this house, we'd have to put some work into it -- refinishing floors, updating some electrical, replacing some windows, and maybe slightly remodeling the kitchen.  (We bought it knowing that we'd have to put some sweat equity into it.  We've already done a lot, but have much more to go.)

So, what do you recommend?  Stay in Town A, or move to Town B?  Thanks in advance to all who chime in.

superhero

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Re: Should we move from Town A to Town B?
« Reply #1 on: July 23, 2013, 11:19:59 AM »
How much is your monthly gas expense? Moving is very expensive, and would probably wipe out many months/years of gas savings. If however, you value your time outside of the car much higher, then the moving expenses could easily be worth it.

Personally, not spending my time stuck in a car is worth a lot more than higher living expenses. We just recently moved to a new city and now our library is 0.2 miles away, grocery & liquor 0.2 miles, thrift store 0.3 miles, and downtown (lots of free/cheap weekend activities) 0.75 miles away. We pretty much walk everywhere and our only car trip involves going to Costco (5 miles) every once in a while. The city is also very bike friendly.

If you think you think your kids will spend many more years enjoying activities in Town B, and you believe DH's job is secure, I say go for it. Living closer to where you live your life is wonderful.

LadyM

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Re: Should we move from Town A to Town B?
« Reply #2 on: July 23, 2013, 11:55:00 AM »
Sounds to me your ideal situation is staying put.  It doesn't sound cost effective to 1) spend lots of money to improve the house, even if you're doing it yourself, 2) spend more money on a more expensive house, PLUS the cost of moving, PLUS higher taxes, and 3) you'd be trading your "kid activities commute" for your husband's work commute....doubtful you'd see any savings for a long time.

Chances are you can save more $$ if you get a more fuel efficient car.  I recently went from a minivan (I know what lame mileage those things get) to a Nissan Versa hatchback, and I'm happy to report that I cut my gas bill in half!  I have 2 kids and I work...and commute about 11 miles each way 5x/week.  I definitely had a "what the hell am I doing?!" moment with the minivan, and realized unloading it in favor of a more efficient vehicle was the way to go.  It's been great, I love my little car.  And we just took a week-long vacation in it too with no problem, and the addition of a roofbag.  :)

In the long run, I truly think you'll lose money on the move, or at least you'll take quite awhile to recoup the cost of moving with gas savings.  But this isn't from someone who's run the numbers on your behalf, it's just a quick reaction to what you describe.  If you really want to break it down, then really BREAK IT DOWN, spreadsheet style.  See how the numbers might really shake out.  I know there are variables in the cost of the house, moving, remodeling the current place to sell, etc, but get some ball-park figures, plug it all in and see where you land!

After all of that, also consider this: where would you be happier: where you currently are in Town A?  Or Town B?

Mint Chip

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Re: Should we move from Town A to Town B?
« Reply #3 on: July 23, 2013, 02:13:11 PM »
Thanks very much for your responses! 

Currently, our gas expense varies from $350 to $400 per month!  (ouch!)  We do our best to consolidate/optimize our trips, but we live around 15 minutes from the supermarket, 10 minutes from the library, 24 minutes from the pool (my kids swim on a team -- not very Mustachian, I know, but they took to swimming like .... well, like fish), and their other activities are usually around 20 -25 minutes from here -- usually in the vicinity of Town B.  We moved here from out of state when our kids were small, and our priority was to be close to DH's job, but since we've been here, it seems that increasingly, the only thing we do in town is sleep, and play in the yard when we're home (and DH's job was here, of course).  We've met some really lovely people in town, have wonderful neighbors, and like that our monthly housing expense is reasonable for the area.  But since finding this blog, everything is now subject to scrutiny to see if there's a way to improve costs and/or quality of living.

I was aggressively looking into more fuel-efficient alternatives to the minivan (and got some great recommendations here), but (ironically) because we spend so much time in the car, DH insists that it be a big one -- for safety... I'm still not giving up, though, b/c, with the right vehicle, we could reduce our gas expense by at least a third.

Whether we save by moving would, of course, depend on the house we could find in Town B, and how much $ we'd make by selling this house.  Less expensive houses do appear on the market from time to time, but the taxes are higher there across the board.  I'm not sure if we'd NEED to do all of these repairs in order to sell this house and walk away with some cash; I'd have to check with a realtor to be sure, and then use a spreadsheet to see what our bottom-line would be (i.e., how much we could reasonably expect to make on a sale, and then how much "house" we can reasonably expect to afford).

We are so car-dependent -- we even have to drive somewhere just to take a walk! --  that I thought it might make sense to move so that we are closer to most of what we do and where we go.  Would we be happier in Town B?  I don't know for sure.  I know that we'd all be happier spending a lot less time in the car, less $ on gas, and having the freedom to walk to the library or to the pool or to the post office, or ride our bikes to the playground.  We're happy here, too, and moving IS expensive.  I guess it will come down to numbers, and the value that we place on being in a more walk/bike-friendly area.

Thank you for your thoughts!

Zaga

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Re: Should we move from Town A to Town B?
« Reply #4 on: July 23, 2013, 03:38:43 PM »
What about looking into the town where DH's new job is?

Mint Chip

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Re: Should we move from Town A to Town B?
« Reply #5 on: July 23, 2013, 06:07:10 PM »
Hi, and thanks for your help!

DH's job is in "the city", and we don't want to live there.  We've lived in a few big cities (NYC , SFO, BOS), and all I ever did was plan my escape (each for a different reason).   Especially with the kids, it's not something that we'd consider.  I know that people do it and like it, but it's just not for us.  If he had to be there every day, we'd consider moving closer, but given that he won't be commuting all the time, we'd rather not.  Does that make sense?

Zaga

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Re: Should we move from Town A to Town B?
« Reply #6 on: July 23, 2013, 06:31:28 PM »
Oh, I'm with you there!  I hate cities!  My DH just got a job within a mile of my job, before that he was downtown in the nearest big city, and the commute was terrible.  We're doing what we can do gradually move our jobs and lives closer to where we live, even though we're in a very small town without many jobs.

Mint Chip

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Re: Should we move from Town A to Town B?
« Reply #7 on: July 23, 2013, 06:49:21 PM »
Yes, that's also our situation -- small town with very few jobs.  We're also trying to set things up such that where we live (i.e., shop, play, etc.) and work are the same place.  We moved here when our youngest was only 1 so we were pretty clueless about kids' activities, etc., at that point.  The option to work from home helps a lot, so we're another step closer to putting it all together.  I'll have to crunch the numbers to see what makes the most sense, I guess, but I'm leaning toward making a move that will make us less car-dependent -- without moving to "the city". ;)