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April 03, 2007

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The opposite can be true as well though. It's worth looking into it in detail on a case-by-case basis.

As an example, moving to Silicon Valley has proven to be a huge financial gain for me and my fiancee. I instantly got a 25% raise, my fiancee got one as well.

The costs of living from Boston to Silicon Valley are surprising the same as long as you rent. Actually the costs of living are much cheaper as we save quite a bit on heat in the winter. Plus there's the savings of a gym (the outside is a year-round gym here, that's not the case of Boston in Feb). If you plan on owning a home, it's so much more that there aren't much savings in the move.

What about a third place? I'm not sure what the growth prospects for a software engineer (like me) are in the middle of Kansas. I'm sure you could probably find a couple of companies, but I wonder if you'd have the option of moving to a new company every two years for a 20% raise (not an uncommon practice). There's also a happiness factor to consider. The type of person that is happy in NYC is not likely to be as happy in the country. If it's not your lifestyle, it's just not your lifestyle. So perhaps, to compensate for that lack of happiness, you start up that latte habit that you had quit in NYC. Perhaps, you are sad that you moved away from all your friends and family (I know I am) and need to start seeing a psychiatrist for depression. Perhaps because everything seems like a bargain ($11 breakfasts!) you go out twice as much destroying your savings.

Each person should look hard at their lifestyle and decide what's right for them. Don't get caught into believing that moving is going to help. It might, and it might not.

Here's the thing, if you read her article MP Dunleavy, they were spending out of control on ridiculous things before. They had their home in the country and rented an apartment in the city for more than her DH made or something like that. It was ridiculous.

So their savings were not on the same stuff, it was from dumping an apartment in the city. Whammo they immediately saved a bundle.

Lattes don't matter if you can't pay all your bills. It's the big items like cars and homes. If they take up 75% of your income before taxes then taxes, and everything else on CC, it's forgone that you bought too much house or car.

FMF and Lazy Man and Money are both right. I'm sure that in almost any circumstances, there are at least two choices for places to live that will support the lifestyle that will make you happy, and one will be cheaper than the other. And those places and lifestyle might change at different points in your life.

For example if you just want a beach lifestyle, Florida is probably cheaper than California. This doesn't work so well in the UK cos there is intrisically less choice in a smaller country, but even so, for the surfer life, the Gower Peninsula is cheaper than North Cornwall.

My wife and I are considering a move from California to Ohio; from one of the most expensive states to one of the least expensive states. Needless to say, I am looking forward to saving/investing a bundle!

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