Ah, it's a beautiful Saturday morning in my lovely studio apartment. The spring air is keeping the room cool - in a few weeks it will be piping hot outside, with the heat somehow collecting in between the walls of my studio.
In the background of my waking state is TLC's "My First Home." A couple is looking for a home in the Bay Area, and they've found one they loved.
Meanwhile, I search Craigslist ads vigorously. It's not that I'll find a place to move today, as my move-in date is July 1 at earliest, but I'm still trying to decide whether to leave my complex for a more affordable option or stay here and deal with a tight budget and less savings.
When I moved in and the studio cost $905 including utilities, it wasn't that much of a jump from the $700 + utilities room share options available on the market. For $100 extra dollars, approx, I could have a place of my own. That was a no brainer.
Then rents went up to $1050 and I decided to stay. It was a shock, surely, but it still seemed like a pretty good deal given my options.
$1300 - is about double what I could be paying for a room share situation. I could even compromise and get a room and bathroom in a 2br/2ba condo apartment for less than the $1300.
Moving is such a pain in the ass, though. I could hypothetically "move" for little cost, if I can get some friends to help. As far as furniture goes, I don't have much. The only large thing I'm sold on keeping is my bed, since I bought that new for a whopping $800 two years ago (I decided after 6 months on a used futon with poor support, I deserved a good night sleep). I have a large bookshelf I got at Target a few months ago and it's really heavy - but it would be a shame to toss that! Other than the bed, bookshelf, and some small tables, I have a piece of crap IKEA coffee table that started to fall apart before I put it together (though it's functional) and a large horizontal dresser that I could part with - I'm not sure anyone would want to buy it, but I'd consider trying to sell it on Craiglist. I have plenty of room in my closet now for my clothes, and I'd hope that wherever I move would have at least this much closet space. Then there's a TV, a printer, a microwave, and other odds and ends. I really don't have that much stuff. It's still a bitch to move, but it's not like I'm moving a house worth of life. It's just whatever I could fit in a studio for the past two years.
Also, having less space might be good for me. It would keep me organized as there wouldn't be places to hide things. Heh.
The downside of getting a roommate is - well - obviously enough to have me living in a studio currently. Noise. Roommate drama. Not being able to cook naked in the kitchen. These things are hard to compromise on. :)
My biggest fear is that I won't find anything I like. I have some cushion. If I decide to move - I'd come back to California around June 20-something, and I'd have that time to finish getting out of my apartment. I'd put my things into storage and move in with my good friend who has offered up her second bedroom. I'll pay her rent, but it will be way less than what it would cost to stay in my studio in August. $1300 versus, maybe $500 or something (plus whatever it costs to put my things in storage for a month.) That will cover the 2 weeks in June that I can't work because I'm going to be in Israel on vacation. Then I can really take some time to find a good living situation.
The real question is, how picky am I? I get anxious in so many living situations. Finally, in this light and airy studio I feel, well, at the very least calm and comfortable. The greenery outside (beyond the parking area) makes me happy. It almost reminds me of home, back east. I love waking up here.
But is it the stupidest thing in the world not to move? If I did move, I'd look for a place ideally that costs less than what I'm paying now, so I could pay under $1000, and I'd put any extra money between that and the $1300 I would be paying for my studio into a special down payment fund. I'm tired of renting, and dealing with yearly rent increases.
I just wish I felt more settled. All of my friends are getting engaged and married. Buying homes. Me? Well, I've been in a relationship for two years. We joke about moving in together one day but we're talking more apartment than house. He's going to grad school in fall 2009, and who knows where I'll be. That's why it really doesn't make sense for me to buy anything right now. Even though the prices for condos in the area are coming down while rents are going up, up, up.
The more I think about it, the more I realize the only logical option is to move. I could be saving $500 a month if I find a place for $800, or $6000 a year. $6000 a year is nothing to shake a stick at. That's a huge chunk of change to go to my downpayment fund. Even if it's $4000 and I get a slightly nicer place, it's still a lot of money.
*sigh* - I just... wish there was an obvious option hitting me on the head. But life is never so black and white.
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