Moving 3000 miles. Need input.

If you are in the US, the fastest way to sell something is often Craigslist.

As to what to move, a move of that distance makes most anything (that a young person owns) not worth moving. Storage/transportation for cheap furniture for example is going to be more expensive than new cheap furniture after you factor in what you can get for selling.

So if you have a TV, for example, you see what the cost of a new (can be used of course) TV would be for you, what you can sell it for, and what it would cost to move it for you.

Subtract the amount you can sell the TV for from the cost of a new TV and you'll have a figure that needs to be less than the cost to move the TV for it to make sense.

I had a couple thousand dollars worth of furniture that I had just bought when I moved from San Diego. I ended up paying for storage a while while figuring out what I wanted to do with it, till I realized that paying to move it and store it was more expensive than the stuff was worth. I ended up giving it all away (didn't have time to sell it and a friend needed furniture).

As to saving money, your biggest costs are likely going to be food and entertainment. If you learn how to make your own food you can save a lot of money. Eating out costs at least $8 a meal in the US, and that's when you eat garbage like fast food. You can feed yourself for under a dollar a meal if you can cook. At 90 meals a month this can be a savings of over $600/month (and this is at McDonalds prices, anything more edible will be a more stark difference).

Entertainment is the other big cost you are likely to face. Going out to have fun is expensive. Entertainment is also not entirely discretionary, so don't pretend that you don't need entertainment. If you starve yourself of entertainment you will splurge so try to find regular (weekly) entertainment that you can afford.

Thanks, I'll probably take a look into craigslist, when do you think I should start selling stuff and making big plans and packing and all that? Like sell stuff maybe a month/month and a half and pack a couple weeks ahead of time?

I moved from Ireland to Boston over 10 years ago and I brought 2 suitcases filled with clothes, personal items, momentos. That was all I needed to start a new life.

Of course, a lot of my things were sold/given away (furniture, electronic items) and anything else was left at parents home in Ireland (photos, books, etc).

You mention you will be moving in with your girlfriends mom? I presume this means you are moving to be in the same city as your girlfriend? Could this be why your parents are a little upset? They may question your reasons and worry about you having nothing in this new city other than her, especially given that you mention a job that sucks! Why are you taking a job that sucks? Get a better one! Or is the job just for the interim until you get something you like?

I presume you are 18-25? Isn't this the age that most college-bound young people leave home? You're parents need to let you go and make your way. Even if you are making a mistake and things don't work out, you need to get out there and experience things. Good for you being brave enough to spread your wings. Many people never leave their homesteads but Americans are refreshingly curious and willing to take a risk and go on an adventure, I've noticed, so your parents should get over it. Tell them they have raised you so well that your positive attitude means you are willing to try new things. If they feel that you will always count on them to advise and be there for you, it should make them feel easier about you moving so far away.

My siblings now live all over the world - America, Australia, Europe - and my parents have a great time traveling from one to the other. Sure they miss us being close-by but they are proudest of knowing that they instilled the confidence in us to fly.

I don't know what you have to sell or pack. So it's hard to tell you how much time you need. But I can tell you that packing is within your control and selling isn't. So take into consideration that some things may be hard to sell and you may need more time.

Put the ads on craigslist early and you'll see what kind of interest you can expect for your items on sale. You don't need to actually sell them right away but you can get started on finding interested buyers.

Heeven,

Thanks for the reply, and my job that sucks is here where im at right now lol. Im going to be looking for a job out there soon, my gf and her mom are going to help me. That was good advice about what to tell my parents, I may use it and see if it helps things. Just wish i could make it so they didnt worry as much ya know? Thanks again!
-Matt