Aspiring LadyStache: I NEED ALLTHEADVICE

[abbonney]

Hi!

Ok, so I'm a 28 year old creative writer trying to grow a ladystache. Love writing that. ladystache ladystache ladystache.....

ANYWAY

Here are my stats:

Income after taxes and 7% 401K Contribution: $3500 per month or roughly $47k per year with some extra income though my Air BNB listing and freelance side work and a small flower company I use to do florals at weddings, probably totaling ~2k per year.

Debt: $0  (yay!)

Savings: $2500 in old 104ks and about $1500 in a Schwab mutuial fund  (pitiful I know.)

I have two goals:

- Aggressively save for a move to San Diego in the next year where I will be much happier than in Dallas (I'm an ocean/outdoor person in a concrete jungle here)

- Aggressively save for retirement and build my portfolio


After making some changes to make MMM proud, I think I can probably put away between $16k and $20k additional savings in a year. Here's my question:

- Presuming I don't find a job immediately before my move to SD in the next year, how much savings would I need to transition?  Any others made cross country moves on a wink and a prayer?

- With whatever I don't need to use immediately to raise my quality of life in a new place, where do I put it? My Roth? My mutual fund? Open a new account?

Remember, my expertise is pretty much limited to marketing know-how and the English language so money talk is terrifying to me. Where does a lady who knows nothing about money put her cash where it will grow the most with the least amount of attention? And how much do I put in which place?

Thank you in advance, gurus!

[Future Lazy]

MMM's conventional wisdom is to put all your cash in a Vanguard index fund and turn the other way. This is extremely economical, and requires diligently putting money in the account and ignoring it. I did this recently, but I also found out that I'm... Well, I'm lazy, and I like mobile banking applications and automatic things, and (that I can tell), Vanguard's programs aren't very automatic...

So when MMM posted about Betterment, I checked it out with about $500, and saw that not only would Betterment would automatically diversify my holdings, help me forecast according to my savings goals and timeline using a really gorgeous and nifty graphy widgety thing, I could also very easily set up an automatic transfer to meet my goals. VERY "set it and forget it" for only slightly more than Vanguard's extremely reasonable fees; .25% Vanguard vs. .35% Betterment, for people like you and I with less than 50k savings... But cheaper, if you save more than 50k!

As for moving, I can't really help you there. I live less than 20mi from where I was born, so.. But, good luck with the moving plans! :)

[Jesus Christ]

Ideally it is easier to find a job first then move. Since you are younger, I would focus on finding a roommate in San Diego whenever you are ready to make the jump.  That person would be able to help you out by giving you direction around your new town and possible new leads for friends. But also flexibility to re-adjust yourself if you have to move across town or move three towns away for employment opportunities once out there.

Have you thought about being a technical writer? I work in manufacturing and we have two full time associates who write work instructions and other silly documents no one reads.

Before you go, close all your local accounts and try to unload unnecessary stuff to help your cause. 

[mozar]

I was wondering when Jesus Christ would show up...

[marty998]

I was wondering when Jesus Christ would show up...

Well he was somewhat mustachian. I didn't see JC getting sucked into all that consumerist shit 2000 years ago like buying too much chariot for his needs.

He even couch-surfed at various places.

[DocCyane]

Having lived in California the last 25 years, I would rethink moving here. If you want to enjoy the outdoors there are lots of places that can offer that without the high cost of living and taxation.

Once you move somewhere, there is a tendency to get stuck. You don't want to be stuck somewhere where the housing is this expensive. The state as a whole is going in the wrong direction economically. You'll be paying a great deal for other people's pensions (state workers, teachers) while contributing little to your own future.

One of the best economic moves you could make right now is to choose a better place.

[Pigeon]

I agree with DocCyane.  I've lived in high COLA places and never again.  You might earn a little more, but it's seldom enough to make up the difference.  There are a bunch of online calculators that will help you compare cities.

[abbonney]

Well from what I can tell, I'd be paying similarly in rent in San Diego as I do in Texas, but would pay less in utilities because the weather is so much better.

Thanks for the advice, everyone!

[mustachianteacher]

Well from what I can tell, I'd be paying similarly in rent in San Diego as I do in Texas, but would pay less in utilities because the weather is so much better.

Thanks for the advice, everyone!

I've lived in several parts of California, and I question this assumption that the rent would be similar. The San Diego area is notorious for high rents and real estate prices whereas Texas often seems to have astoundingly low real estate prices.

As for utilities, yes, maybe. If you're close to the coast, you may not use the AC quite as much, but once you move more inland (for the lower rents, gas prices, less congestion, etc.) then you get much hotter weather, and you end up using the AC more.

[DeepEllumStache]

I've had some friends move from Texas to Southern California.  Some love it and would never move back, some don't love it.  Everyone dislikes the higher cost of living and the taxes compared to Texas.  CA has a very high state income tax, so make sure you include that cost in your calculations. 

+1 to the benefits of getting a roommate.  Check with someone who has lived in San Diego on the different areas that you are looking at to live. The rents may seem comparable, but the specific areas and places that you'd actually consider living in (work access, general feel of a neighborhood, security, parking, etc) may be higher or lower cost. 

Consider taking a few days to visit San Diego to figure out where you want to live and get an apartment.  I've moved across the country several times, both with and without having visited and with and without having the housing situation nailed down.  It was pricier and more stressful to go blind without housing.

Focus your savings over the next year into a liquid emergency fund in a savings account.  The amount you need will depend on your job situation.  If you don't have something lined up, you'll need more based upon how good the job market is for your field in San Diego.

[snshijuptr]

Please do remember that California will shave 9.8% off the top of whatever you earn (the tax brackets are really really low).

That said, I live in California and loved living in SD. I would not trade California for any number of years of retirement. There are some inexpensive areas of SD, but also a few not-very-nice, "rowdy" areas (very few of which would really count as a ghetto in any other city). I recommend finding an online job that doesn't care about your location or a job in SD before you move out. California still is struggling with unemployment issues if you aren't a programmer.

The best life advice I can say is that if SD is going to be your "forever home," don't be in a huge hurry to get out here. Plan out your move and take a couple years if needed to ensure you have your financial ducks in a row.

Also check out http://www.costofliving.net/ for an idea of the relative prices of various things.

[abbonney]

I've traveled to SD three times in the last few years deciding whether it would be a good fit for me, and I know I would need a raise to keep my same quality of life there in terms of housing. I have made a lot of connections there and have relationships with staffing agencies, so I feel confident about my job abilities--experience web content writers can land tech related jobs.

I will take the advice on the roommate part--no problem there as I like living with people. My thought is to get temporary housing via craigslist or air bnb while I search around--if I end up with a job in Carlsbad vs the Gaslamp, then I have the freedom to find an apartment closer to where I work. I've heard the South Park neighborhood has started to turn around recently. Anybody live there and know more about that?