readers have had a few interesting discussions recently on moving to a lower cost of living area — so I thought we’d start a discussion on things to consider before you make a move like that!
These are some of the top concerns I’ve seen voiced by readers — what would your concerns be? Readers, what are your best tips on what to consider moving to a lower cost of living area?
(Here’s a handy COL calculator…)
If You live far From Your Company, health insurance might become an Issue
If you’re going remote and moving away from your company’s offices, do note: the company insurance plan may no longer apply to you! typically companies only cover a limited geographical area (which may be pretty wide, like a tri-state area) — but as you get further away from the epicenter the options for doctors and hospitals may be so scarce that you might end up preferring getting your own insurance through the marketplace. (Fortunately, moving to a different zipcode is a qualifying event, so you won’t have to wait until the general enrollment period opens.)
{related: the type A guide to moving}
And if you’ve never bought insurance through the marketplace… prepare for some headaches! My family’s health insurance is through the marketplace and it feels like we’re paying through the nose and jumping through hoops to go to doctors or get specific things covered… and all on our own because we’re the only ones we know with the insurance. Wheee.
{related: where you live is one of the biggest money decisions you make}
Don’t assume There will Be Plentiful childcare Options
This may not be a big deal if you don’t have children yet, but readers have noted that childcare can be a lot less flexible in the suburbs. There may only be one or two choices for daycares, and they may have an absolute drop-dead pickup time of 5 PM.
Similarly, readers have noted that aftercare may be difficult to find for school-age kids — and schools themselves may pose a problem from a commuting perspective.
Speaking about a potential nyc to Chicago move, one reader cautioned:
There are selective enrollment schools (i.e. gifted program, more or less) which require a test to enter, and also sometimes a lottery, but they are scattered around the (rather large) city. depending on where you ended up living, schooling and associated traffic can really impact your overall quality of life (a school which on paper is 2 mi from home might take 30 min or more to get to, depending on where both are located.).
Don’t assume You’ll go back All the Time
Many would-be movers say to themselves, ah, but I’ll go back to [HCOL city] all the time to see pals and enjoy the things I love, so the financial savings will definitely make sense! but readers have cautioned that in reality that almost never happens.
One reader (discussing a possible move from a LCOL city back to a HCOL city) noted:
[W]e moved to a LCOL area 1.5 hours from a major city thinking “no big deal, we’ll just go to the city all the time.” We’ve gone literally once since we moved here three years ago. It’s just a little too far for a day trip (especially with traffic) and hotels are so expensive in that city that if we’re plunking down that kind of money, we’d rather cough up a couple hundred bucks for plane tickets and go somewhere we haven’t been. So this is a nice idea in theory, but I think you generally need to go into a move expecting that you’re not going to get to the city that much.
So really look at your potential new city with open eyes — as we’ve noted before, you should think about walkability, availability of ethnic foods, trendier restaurant concepts, hard-to-find ingredients, seasons, entertainment options, and more. (Here’s another terrific reader threadjack on what to consider before you move…
If your target city is in America, you may want to read the article in The Atlantic on “How America Fractured into four Parts,” which is a really interesting rebuke to the idea that it’s just coastal elites vs. everyone else.
{related: what to consider if you’re thinking about moving to the suburbs}
Readers, what would be your primary thing to look at if you were considering moving to a lower cost of living area?
{related: do the benefits of living closer to work outweigh the cons?}
Stock photo via Stencil.