I always dreamed of moving to New York City, so I took 3 steps to prepare myself — and my money

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• When I decided to fulfill my dream of moving to New York City, I needed to prepare financially.
• By building a moving fund and making sure I had good credit, I was able to make New York my home.
• This article is part of “Milestone Moments,” a series about financial planning for major life events.

Moving to New York City had been a dream of mine for decades.

I thought moving to the city could amplify my journalism career, lead to greater opportunities, and give me new experiences. But uncertainty came with the dream. Could I make it work? My worst fear was being financially uncertain in New York. I really think that would be hell on earth. So I took some steps before I moved to ensure that did not happen.

When I moved to Washington, DC, as a student, my parents cosigned the lease for my first apartment. Even after I graduated, they paid my rent for a year until I got on my feet. But moving to New York was all on me, and my credit was pulled everywhere I went. There was no way around it.

Here’s how I made it work:

1. I started with research

I did my homework. I lived on Google, researching neighborhoods, apartments, and rent prices. For every neighborhood I considered, I searched the area for grocery stores, post offices, pharmacies, and restaurants — and, of course, the subway lines. I knew I would not have a car, so I wanted to ensure that necessities would be nearby. 

To find my apartment, I used a real-estate agent. After doing the research and learning about apartment scams, I decided that using an agent was the safest way to go. My agent charged one month’s rent, which the apartment building paid for. Some local buildings can charge more than that, up to 10% of the annual rent. When you consider the rent prices in New York, that can really add up. Thankfully, in my case, the apartment building paid for the fee, though that’s not always the case in the city’s unique apartment market.

I traveled to New York twice to meet with my real-estate agent and look at apartments and neighborhoods, including Brooklyn’s sprawling areas, to get a feel for the city. I did not want to pick an apartment sight unseen or move into a neighborhood I knew nothing about. 

I hired a moving company with several good reviews. It would be moving my life for me, so I wanted to ensure it was a reputable company. 

2. I set aside a moving fund

Just like I had for my emergency fund, I opened a bank account for the move. I knew that I would hire movers to transport my things from Washington to New York (a long-distance move), but there was also the security deposit and first month’s rent for my apartment. And none of it was cheap.

When you hear that everything is more expensive in New York, they are not kidding. I moved four hours up the interstate, and everything doubled in price. For example, getting my two televisions mounted on the wall cost $600. When I walked into the apartment, it had not been cleaned between tenants, so I hired cleaners and various other things before I got settled. I leaned heavily on that moving fund and was so glad I had set it aside.

When I decided to save money for my move, I sat down and went through all my bills, determining how much I could comfortably save. Then, I took another look to see what I could cut to save even more. I set up an automatic deposit into the savings account for the move directly from my paycheck every two weeks for six months, so there was no second-guessing.

Knowing that I was moving to a new city and that I could go to dinners, movies, and hang out with friends there, I cut a lot of that out while I was saving. I focused on the goal, and sometimes, it was hard because we all need a little entertainment at times — but I was determined to make this happen. 

By the time everything was said and done, and I was sitting comfortably in my apartment, I had spent $10,000.

3. I checked my credit

I made sure my finances were in order. I had a good job with great health benefits. I knew that my credit would be checked, so I pulled my credit report from all three credit bureaus and made sure everything was in good shape. Understand that you are moving to a new city where no one knows you; all you have is money and credit to get you where you need to go.

I have always known that credit is so important, and I write about it from firsthand experience. I knew that to get an apartment in NYC, I would have to have good credit. I already had a positive payment history because I always pay my bills on time, but there were a couple of steps I took to make sure my credit looked great:

• I reduced my credit utilization by paying down the balances on my credit card. I wanted to look like I could handle my credit obligations and wasn’t carrying around debt. 
• When I did use credit before my move, I made sure to charge only what I could pay off each month.

With all this in place, I was ready to start my life in New York. I consider this to be such a great milestone in my life because I was able to make a dream of mine come true, and it was good financial habits that made it possible.

Now I navigate New York City as if I’ve lived here all my life.