Would you move?

[northernmastiff]

So, I thought that I would use you as a sounding board just to see what you would do. My husband and I both run our own businesses, both are successful, although his more so than mine (no competition at all, honest). Anyway, with the cost of living and everything, we are finding life is tight, especially over the last six months or so. We have been working longer hours and not seeing the fruits of our labor due to the high cost of living, which is going up again in January. We have less time to spend with the kids, no time to spend with each other and are pretty much just getting by on the day to day. Anyway, we have been talking and are deciding towards move out of province to another province where cost of living is much lower and we could actually start to enjoy life a little more. In addition, we would actually have a little money left over after savings for RRSP, RESP and investing in a great health insurance (which we don't have right now).

The down side of moving would be the fact that we have no support systems in the new province, although we don't really have that here. My entire family is on the other side of the country and his family doesn't see us much except for the occasional holiday, which we could do out of province. That is our biggest hesitation so my question would be...if you could move and it meant owning a house (which we just can't do where we are) and having enough in savings to send the kids through university and actually retire comfortably, would you? We wouldn't have to work as much as we do now and my husband would have enough time and money to move into phase two of his business and actually start hiring employees, which has been a dream of his for the 15 years he has been self employed.

See, on paper it looks great but my friends keep telling me not to, which is where my hesitation is. Anyway, anyone make a huge relocation out of state, province, country and how did you find it?

 

[raechiemay]

While I love living in Texas, if it came down to it & financially it worked better for me I would move. I do have family here but we really don't do too much together other than on Thanksgiving & Christmas. Thanksgiving I spend with my dad as he lives in Wisconsin so really it would be just Christmas. I'm not married & my dogs are my children & any day I work long hours I feel guilty for coming home & just going to bed. In your case it seems the pros outweigh the cons & if I were you, I'd take the plunge. Sometimes we gotta make changes before we get to a point in life where we just can't.

 

[ruthcatrin]

Are you two the only current employees of the businesses that would be affected by your move? Would the businesses still be workable, and sought after, after the move?

I relocated to a different state, about 6hrs away, on a job offer. They paid my moving expenses, and I had a guaranteed job after the move. It went ok, I tend to be a bit of recluse anyway, so it didn't affect my social life that much. I don't think I could have done it if I didn't have the guaranteed job though.

 

[Sadies Mom]

I would go with what your gut tells you to do. I have made two life changing moves in my life, and I would do them all over agin if I had to. We moved from Chicago to Dallas in 2002, left family and friends there, to persue a "higher standard of living" and actually have money left over for savings. My husband is also self employed, and if it meant that he would be able to go to phase two in his business, and hire people, we would move in a heart beat. Only you and your husband can make that final decission, but if it was me and my family and opportynity was knocking, I would take the plundge.

 

[northernmastiff]

Are you two the only current employees of the businesses that would be affected by your move? Would the businesses still be workable, and sought after, after the move?

I relocated to a different state, about 6hrs away, on a job offer. They paid my moving expenses, and I had a guaranteed job after the move. It went ok, I tend to be a bit of recluse anyway, so it didn't affect my social life that much. I don't think I could have done it if I didn't have the guaranteed job though.

He is self employed and so am I, two different businesses. No employees would be affected if we moved and the work is always there, whether we live here or moved somewhere new.

Thanks everyone. Our head and hearts say yes to the move but it is that little voice inside that causes all the doubts.

 

[ruthcatrin]

Then honestly, unless you find the prospect of not having close friends on hand for a period of time (till you make new ones) scary, then I'd say the move is worth it.

 

[BlackShadowCaneCorso]

I think it will go based on your family. We have discussed this several times in our house and to be honest it is something we have considered and if we get to the point that it would be easier for our kids and would make our lives easier so that we could enjoy our life not just feel like we are living day by day for something then yes, especially since my hobby tends to be a little expensive . Scott has recently gone out on his own and at the moment we are doing okay but if that should change then we will re-evalutate. All of our family is here so it would be a lot harder for us to leave but I have a sister in AB and a brother in BC so I would have family on the other side of the country but NB is home.

Will both companies still be companies that will be profitable in the new province? Like you one of the perks of living in a province that has a lower cost of living is we have our own house on a 2.5 acre lot and also a land lot of 12 acres that we are planning on building our dream home on in the future, we are able to persue my hobby with the dogs, Scott's various outdoor hobbies and out kids are raised in a great small community. The incomes here aren't a high but as you are your own bosses that is something that you will determine for yourself.

Are you thinking of moving to the praries or farther east?

 

[ruthcatrin]

I have to add that my persective is that of a person who as much as I love my parents I'm MUCH happier with them living at a distance and if I had the chance to move FURTHER away from my mother right now I'd probly do so.....so I don't find the prospect of moving away from family to be scary. Hubby has a bit more of an issue with it, and I DO have to admit that having the support structure of his family within close driving distance is comforting, but it wouldn't be enough to stop me if I thought everything else was good for the move.

 

[musicdeb]

I agree to go with your gut feeling. When I have a major decision, I sit down with a piece of paper and write down the pros and the cons. Whichever list is longer and my gut agrees, then there is my decision.

 

[voidecho]

Looks like a no brainer on paper. We moved from the midwest (Illinois) to California about six years ago for my work. We rented a place for a while (partially because of the cost of housing back then and partially because we weren't sure we'd like it here). It didn't take us long to fall in love with the new place. I left that original job and took a more "local" job and we bought a house. We're "Californians" now.

We do miss our families and friends back in the midwest, but you adapt and make new friends (neighbors, co-workers, dog parks )

 

[Smart_Family]

Looks like a no brainer on paper. We moved from the midwest (Illinois) to California about six years ago for my work. We rented a place for a while (partially because of the cost of housing back then and partially because we weren't sure we'd like it here). It didn't take us long to fall in love with the new place. I left that original job and took a more "local" job and we bought a house. We're "Californians" now.

We do miss our families and friends back in the midwest, but you adapt and make new friends (neighbors, co-workers, dog parks )

This!

 

[mklamcc]

We will b doing the same thing in June. We don't have any family where we are but we have a good support system of friends. We will miss them and it will be a big adjustment but moving is good for our us and our family. If you will have more money, more time, and more opportunities to expand your bussinesses...why not. Go for it!

 

[northernmastiff]

I think it will go based on your family. We have discussed this several times in our house and to be honest it is something we have considered and if we get to the point that it would be easier for our kids and would make our lives easier so that we could enjoy our life not just feel like we are living day by day for something then yes, especially since my hobby tends to be a little expensive . Scott has recently gone out on his own and at the moment we are doing okay but if that should change then we will re-evalutate. All of our family is here so it would be a lot harder for us to leave but I have a sister in AB and a brother in BC so I would have family on the other side of the country but NB is home.

Will both companies still be companies that will be profitable in the new province? Like you one of the perks of living in a province that has a lower cost of living is we have our own house on a 2.5 acre lot and also a land lot of 12 acres that we are planning on building our dream home on in the future, we are able to persue my hobby with the dogs, Scott's various outdoor hobbies and out kids are raised in a great small community. The incomes here aren't a high but as you are your own bosses that is something that you will determine for yourself.

Are you thinking of moving to the praries or farther east?

We are actually thinking of moving to NB. The companies wouldn't be affected at all. Our biggest concern is trying to decide where to live there.

 

[metaldad904]

As some of you may know I recently uprooted my entire life from Atlanta, GA to Three Rivers, MI. My main reasons were A)To be with my family, I had little to no support system in Georgia outside of a lot of good friends. My whole Dad's side of family lives in Michigan. B)While I had a great job that paid well I was starting to resent it for many reasons including having serious problems with a new boss that was making it a point to essentially pick on me for no reason at all. C)I wanted my daughter my daughter to know my family better, she had only met my Dad a handful of times and i really wanted her to see a different side of my life. D)With my obsession for dogs, I felt that going to a more "country" atmosphere would be better for them. D)The housing market in Michigan is in such bad shape that you can obtain a pretty decent home for the price of a a car (no joke), owning a house is something I've been dreaming of for years and felt like this was the only way i could pull it off. With all that being said i've been her since July and I'm still wondering if i made the right decision. I really enjoy a lot of aspects to living around here but at the same time do really miss my friends and the place know so very well (ATL). The job I currently have isn't even on the same planet as quality, don't even make half as much as I did before which is causing me a great deal of stress, and in turns has kept me from moving out of Dad's house STILL, things are looking up a little bit though...I will be getting a big promotion come next month which will increase my salary a good deal, still not as much as I want but at least it's a start. One other negative is that since i'm living with my Dad I have to deal with his wife, my stepmother on a daily basis. I was a little wary of it from the beginning b/c we never got along when i was a child but i figured maybe now that i'm an adult we could start anew. At first it was going well, we even seemed to be forging a friendship but the past month it has gotten worse and worse. she rarely speaks to me, and I sometimes get the feeling she essentially can't stand me. I've tried my best to go out of my way to be friendly and so forth and have been trying to do my part and help out but nothing ever seems like it matters. My Dad says that's just the way she is sometimes but from my point of view its difficult. I don't like tension and usually get along with most everybody so it can make life living here hard. There have been times i've considered going back to Atlanta, still think i could get my old job back but I feel like if i do i'd be throwing in the towel on something i might not have given a fair shake. Mainly the reason i haven't is b/c I really like being able to see my Dad, this is the first time since i was a little kid that i've been able to spend real time with him and its great to bond with him. Another reason is I recently got custody of my daughter and she seems to really like living up here and likes her school and is doing very well and i don't want to uproot her. So, at least for now i'm sticking it out and hoping to just weather the storm and hopefully it will improve as time goes on.

Not sure if this helped at all but just figured i'd share a similar situation and how its turned out thus far.

 

[BlackShadowCaneCorso]

We are actually thinking of moving to NB. The companies wouldn't be affected at all. Our biggest concern is trying to decide where to live there.

Cool! Well know you will always have a friend in NB if you do. There are lots of nice areas but will depend on what you prefer, being in a large city like atmosphere (at least as city like as we have compared to places like Toronto and such). If you want to talk PM me or call me and we can talk locations. We are in one of the most central regions in the Maritimes as we are right on the border of NB/NS putting us about 2-3 hours (depending on who is driving to any of the major capital cities here in the maritimes. All the provinces are pretty places to live and there are plenty of shows in the area when it comes to your interest in dogs.

---------- Post added at 02:30 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:26 PM ----------

As some of you may know I recently uprooted my entire life from Atlanta, GA to Three Rivers, MI. My main reasons were A)To be with my family, I had little to no support system in Georgia outside of a lot of good friends. My whole Dad's side of family lives in Michigan. B)While I had a great job that paid well I was starting to resent it for many reasons including having serious problems with a new boss that was making it a point to essentially pick on me for no reason at all. C)I wanted my daughter my daughter to know my family better, she had only met my Dad a handful of times and i really wanted her to see a different side of my life. D)With my obsession for dogs, I felt that going to a more "country" atmosphere would be better for them. D)The housing market in Michigan is in such bad shape that you can obtain a pretty decent home for the price of a a car (no joke), owning a house is something I've been dreaming of for years and felt like this was the only way i could pull it off. With all that being said i've been her since July and I'm still wondering if i made the right decision. I really enjoy a lot of aspects to living around here but at the same time do really miss my friends and the place know so very well (ATL). The job I currently have isn't even on the same planet as quality, don't even make half as much as I did before which is causing me a great deal of stress, and in turns has kept me from moving out of Dad's house STILL, things are looking up a little bit though...I will be getting a big promotion come next month which will increase my salary a good deal, still not as much as I want but at least it's a start. One other negative is that since i'm living with my Dad I have to deal with his wife, my stepmother on a daily basis. I was a little wary of it from the beginning b/c we never got along when i was a child but i figured maybe now that i'm an adult we could start anew. At first it was going well, we even seemed to be forging a friendship but the past month it has gotten worse and worse. she rarely speaks to me, and I sometimes get the feeling she essentially can't stand me. I've tried my best to go out of my way to be friendly and so forth and have been trying to do my part and help out but nothing ever seems like it matters. My Dad says that's just the way she is sometimes but from my point of view its difficult. I don't like tension and usually get along with most everybody so it can make life living here hard. There have been times i've considered going back to Atlanta, still think i could get my old job back but I feel like if i do i'd be throwing in the towel on something i might not have given a fair shake. Mainly the reason i haven't is b/c I really like being able to see my Dad, this is the first time since i was a little kid that i've been able to spend real time with him and its great to bond with him. Another reason is I recently got custody of my daughter and she seems to really like living up here and likes her school and is doing very well and i don't want to uproot her. So, at least for now i'm sticking it out and hoping to just weather the storm and hopefully it will improve as time goes on.

Not sure if this helped at all but just figured i'd share a similar situation and how its turned out thus far.

Crap sorry that things are hard for you right now but my grandmother says god never gives up more than we can endure, just keep a positive outlook and save a little bit whenever you can and before you know it you will obtain your goal and you will feel all the more satisfaction in it.

 

[BlackShadowCaneCorso]

As some of you may know I recently uprooted my entire life from Atlanta, GA to Three Rivers, MI. My main reasons were A)To be with my family, I had little to no support system in Georgia outside of a lot of good friends. My whole Dad's side of family lives in Michigan. B)While I had a great job that paid well I was starting to resent it for many reasons including having serious problems with a new boss that was making it a point to essentially pick on me for no reason at all. C)I wanted my daughter my daughter to know my family better, she had only met my Dad a handful of times and i really wanted her to see a different side of my life. D)With my obsession for dogs, I felt that going to a more "country" atmosphere would be better for them. D)The housing market in Michigan is in such bad shape that you can obtain a pretty decent home for the price of a a car (no joke), owning a house is something I've been dreaming of for years and felt like this was the only way i could pull it off. With all that being said i've been her since July and I'm still wondering if i made the right decision. I really enjoy a lot of aspects to living around here but at the same time do really miss my friends and the place know so very well (ATL). The job I currently have isn't even on the same planet as quality, don't even make half as much as I did before which is causing me a great deal of stress, and in turns has kept me from moving out of Dad's house STILL, things are looking up a little bit though...I will be getting a big promotion come next month which will increase my salary a good deal, still not as much as I want but at least it's a start. One other negative is that since i'm living with my Dad I have to deal with his wife, my stepmother on a daily basis. I was a little wary of it from the beginning b/c we never got along when i was a child but i figured maybe now that i'm an adult we could start anew. At first it was going well, we even seemed to be forging a friendship but the past month it has gotten worse and worse. she rarely speaks to me, and I sometimes get the feeling she essentially can't stand me. I've tried my best to go out of my way to be friendly and so forth and have been trying to do my part and help out but nothing ever seems like it matters. My Dad says that's just the way she is sometimes but from my point of view its difficult. I don't like tension and usually get along with most everybody so it can make life living here hard. There have been times i've considered going back to Atlanta, still think i could get my old job back but I feel like if i do i'd be throwing in the towel on something i might not have given a fair shake. Mainly the reason i haven't is b/c I really like being able to see my Dad, this is the first time since i was a little kid that i've been able to spend real time with him and its great to bond with him. Another reason is I recently got custody of my daughter and she seems to really like living up here and likes her school and is doing very well and i don't want to uproot her. So, at least for now i'm sticking it out and hoping to just weather the storm and hopefully it will improve as time goes on.

Not sure if this helped at all but just figured i'd share a similar situation and how its turned out thus far.

Crap sorry that things are hard for you right now but my grandmother says god never gives up more than we can endure, just keep a positive outlook and save a little bit whenever you can and before you know it you will obtain your goal and you will feel all the more satisfaction in it.

 

[northernmastiff]

Thanks Mary, I will send you a pm later today. Off to run a few errands first. We want to be close enough to the city for things for the kids to do but far enough away where we feel removed. We aren't big on city. Also, if we have to rent when we first go out, we want to be in a town with only a few schools. Prefer not to have to take the kids out of their school (again) when we buy and I know it can be harder when you are in larger cities. Where we currently are, we will need over 300k just to get into the neighborhood and it is probably closer to 4 or 500k just to stay in the school district. There is about a 10 block radius (possibly less) that we could buy in. All more reasons for moving. Thanks for letting me know metaldad, I'm sorry that it is that hard for you. Hopefully it will get better and you'll be buying soon. We lived in the states for a year and it was really hard and the decision to move back to Canada was easy but I miss the friends we had there. Much nicer people than the people where I currently live. I always say that my area does not take the "Canadian's are nice" opinion to heart. They tend to be very rude and very much the elitist class. And then I feel like I am being a rude elitist when I complain about them. Catch 22.

 

[metaldad904]

Crap sorry that things are hard for you right now but my grandmother says god never gives up more than we can endure, just keep a positive outlook and save a little bit whenever you can and before you know it you will obtain your goal and you will feel all the more satisfaction in it.

Thanks Mary, its all good...we'll get through it. I'm not the type to just quit when things get tough, I stay positive and just keep plugging away.

 

[Gunny]

if you could move and it meant owning a house (which we just can't do where we are) and having enough in savings to send the kids through university and actually retire comfortably, would you?

I would've been gone yesterday if that's really your situation. I know it's not that easy, but you have to do what's best for your family. I'm not seeing any downside other than having to meet new people, and I really wouldn't consider that a downside at all.

If you don't mind me asking, why do you need a great insurance plan in Canada? I didn't think you guys needed insurance.

 

[northernmastiff]

I would've been gone yesterday if that's really your situation. I know it's not that easy, but you have to do what's best for your family. I'm not seeing any downside other than having to meet new people, and I really wouldn't consider that a downside at all.

If you don't mind me asking, why do you need a great insurance plan in Canada? I didn't think you guys needed insurance.

Yes, that is really our situation. We have universal health care but it doesn't cover the costs of dental, eye care or the prescriptions that you may need. So while health care is cheap, if you need a prescription, you are paying out a lot of extra money. In addition, dental is brutal. Since we are self employed, we have to pay for the insurance ourselves and it is very expensive.