3 Financial Regrets I Had After Moving From the East to West Coast

Packing up your beingness and heading from the East Coast to the West tin consciousness similar swapping snowfall boots for sandals — exciting, refreshing and afloat of possibility.

But erstwhile the thrill of thenar trees and water breezes settles, galore transplants recognize the fiscal representation isn’t arsenic sunny arsenic the weather. From unexpected costs to manner shifts that deed harder than anticipated, radical often observe a fewer wealth missteps on the way.

That’s wherefore GOBankingRates spoke with Ali Zane, idiosyncratic concern adept and CEO astatine iMax Identity Theft Attorney Firm, astir his acquisition with fiscal regrets aft relocating.

Zane decided to determination from Charlotte, North Carolina, to San Francisco, California, successful 2008, and helium said it remains 1 of the astir financially devastating decisions helium failed to program for.

According to a caller survey by GOBankingRates, San Jose, San Francisco and San Diego fertile among the priciest places to unrecorded — successful each case, you’d apt request a household income of implicit $200,000 a twelvemonth to unrecorded comfortably without having to chopped corners.

At the time, helium was making $68,000 a twelvemonth successful a elder concern position, which was comfy successful Charlotte, wherever his owe was $890 a period and his spot taxes were astir $1,200 a year.

“My outgo of surviving was astir 15% beneath the nationalist average. So erstwhile I took a occupation successful San Francisco with a rise to $95,000, I thought I was making a superb fiscal decision,” helium said.

The mathematics seemed straightforward: That other $27,000 a twelvemonth successful income should person gone a agelong mode toward improving his fiscal situation.

“I couldn’t person been much wrong, and the outgo of my mistake was astonishing.”

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Zane’s archetypal daze came erstwhile helium started flat hunting successful San Francisco.

“I learned that rentals were astir $2,200 to $2,600 for a one-bedroom flat successful hardly acceptable neighborhoods.”

His archetypal absorption was to compromise. He rented a two-bedroom flat 45 minutes extracurricular the metropolis successful the East Bay for $1,850 monthly, reasoning helium was being financially responsible.

“I didn’t relationship for the existent outgo of commuting. My regular round-trip commute took 90 minutes, meaning I was investing 7 1/2 hours per week conscionable sitting successful postulation oregon connected nationalist transportation,” Zane said.

Zane ended up buying a car, spending $450 per period connected car payments, $180 connected insurance, $120 connected state and astir $80 connected attraction and tolls.