How Hard Is It To Move To A New State?

[Tony in Ohio]

Does anyone here have any stories or advice about moving to a different state and starting over?

My wife is getting serious about a songwriter career, and if she gets a couple of cuts/hits it big enough to allow me to semi-retire, we may end up moving to Nashville.

I changed cities once before, so I know it will take me a while to get to know the new area. The last move was still in state, and I was working for a large company at the time so it was not too tough. I will call the state and get complete license transfer information if/when the time comes, but I figure some one on this board has some war stories to get me started.

Some details I figure I would need to work out include getting a Local mentor/parner, getting new clients, and learning the new area enough to get competent.... sheesh, maybe I should wait until she makes enough that I can quit appraisal altogether and become an investor

 

[Scott Kibler]

Funny. Was just talking with the wife this evening about moving. We've been planning to move out of the city within a year or two. Been showing the wife around various different suburban areas that I like and that haven't yet been priced to the moon. Got to daydreaming about moving downstate to some small town. Buy a house for cash (no mortgage!!) with the equity from this one and start up business there. God only knows how long it would take me to become competent to appraise in the new area; particularly a rural area with all them mobile, err, manufactured homes I keep hearing about. I'd love to hear from someone who's made that transition.

 

[Nancy Wyatt]

I moved from update NY-Ulster County.

When I moved to the Denver area the house #s were 19560 E Nowhere Street. In NY we rarely had house #'s past 100 or so. And there was no such thing in Upstate NY like a block, or a sprinkler system, or an evaporative cooler. And no Colonial style homes in Colorado.

The good thing in CO was that all the streets have signs, and the houses have numbers on them. Now that was sooo cool.

 

[Karl]

Moved from New Hampshire to Pinal County AZ after 2 years still in cultural shock.

Hopefully when or if U move U'll hook up with someone as good as I have here.

Be ready for some totally different ways of doing things.

Back in NH anything UNDER 150,000 was usually the tuff ones NOW over 150,000 is rare. NH what ever the Value was wasn't a proiblem cause by the time your Appraisal was revieweed the value would be more than U put. Here is MUCH different.

 

[Tim The Enchanter]

I moved from Chicago to L.A. years ago. The job I had transferred me, and that made all the difference. Having a job in place and a car to borrow. If not a place to live.

Also cash helps. My advice is another story. <_<

 

[Jo Ann Meyer Stratton]

I have done a lot of moving but my experiences were unique so I doubt if they would be helpful. But here are my war stories anyway. After being an ad valorem appraiser for fourteen years in Arizona, we moved to southeast NM, five hundred miles away to an area I have never been to. Sent out resumes to anything remotely connected to real estate, got 7 job offers. Three from fee appraisers and a very kind letter from a fourth fee appraiser. So talked to the three and then asked the fourth one which would he recommend. Ended up with an excellent mentor, Bob Sands of Hobbs, NM, working in both Lea County and west Texas. Taught me a tremendous amount--still using comments and information from him 22 years later. First day appointment was at a loan officer's home. She was telling Bob that they had a saying at that bank, if they wanted a high value they called #1, if they wanted a low value they called #2 and if they wanted to know what the value really was they called Bob. So then I knew I had made the right choice. After two years in NM none of us could stand being away from Arizona and the mountains any longer. So husband's job took us to Yuma--ugly but Arizona. Went back into ad valorem appraiser. That job ended so on to the Phoenix area. Worked for a year for the Arizona Department of Transportation, traveling all over the state which was beautiful but very boring. Then got a job with a large private fee appraisal office that got sold to TRW. At times there were 18 appraisers in the office, which meant a lot of sharing of ideas. Eventually 18 appraisers and clerical people quite TRW and formed their own companies. I still have to go visit my "appraisal kids" occasionally. Then husband's job took us to Kingman, AZ where I did appraisals in Mohave County (the ugliest part of Arizona) and Needles, CA. Had to get back to the beautiful part of Arizona, so finally in 1997 came home where I had started in ad valorem appraisal in 1967. Opened my own office and have worked harder in "retirement" then I did in any other location. But I had the advantage of knowing the two counties very throughly from my days of ad valorem appraising and the advantage of knowing lenders nationwide from my days in Phoenix. So I have been able to combine the simple life of a small town with the expertise and contacts gained in the sixth largest metropolitan area. It has been a fun past 37 years--looking forward to at least 20-30 more fun years--after all I am only 68 years old!

 

[Mountain Man]

I moved across state 4 years ago. While our move was in state, it felt like a totally different world. I knew the area fairly well as we vacationed here in the mountains a lot during the summer, all through out my life. But while I might know where the roads will lead you, I didn't know anything about the RE market. I subscribed to the local MLS about 6 years ago, to help Mom and Dad find their final retirement home, and look for other investment opps. We spent many weekends driving around house hunting, and that really opened my eyes to the local market, neighborhood areas, and how much location and views played with the values. I kept my MLS current for a couple of years, because we thought we might have some interest in moving. (Dad was selling his business, and I didn't care to stay.)

By the time we were ready to go house hunting, I knew the area well, and the price ranges of the market areas. But even after settling in, I learned more things about the market. You just can't see it all durring weekend house hunt/visits. But I would say that subscribing to the MLS, a year or so before your move, will give you a good head start.

 

[Opinionated One]

I moved from Elmira NY to Winston-Salem, NC approximately 9 years ago. Decided to be a full time Mom for a couple of years and then went back to work in the real estate industry. It takes years to learn the market and still you have the times when someone will say..."you know where the old Winn-Dixie was".... My best advice is shop around to find a knowledgable, ethical appraiser to help you learn the market area. It takes time and still I get turned around, but a good map is helpful. I was extremely lucky to find an honest, ethical person to work for. That is what has helped the most.

 

[Lee SW IL]

I have not moved, but gave thought to what I would do if we were to move out of our market.


A year prior to a move, I would 1st subscribe to the major news papers in the area, then to their MLS just to learn and observe.

I would also buy a house that was listed by an agent with my own agent. More contacts with more people.

 

[Chris Colston]

I started out in Maryland, prior to certification and became certified with the first go round of tests. Moved to south Florida shortly after Hurricane Andrew in 1993. I worked as a reviewer in a bank until I got my Florida certification. Florida is a tough state to transfer into, even if you are certified in another state.

For a brief period of time I was also certified in Arkansas but I didn't really make a big effort to establish any kind of business there because I knew it was temporary.

I came back to south Florida and picked up the same clients I had before I left. Then 3 years ago I moved again, to east central Florida from south Florida. I was able to maintain most of the same client base, just different branches.

Moving, depending on the state, can be easy or difficult. Getting an Arkansas certification was a piece of cake. Florida makes you jump through hoops.

I would check with the state board wherever you are planning on moving to and find out what you will need to have in place in order to maintain your license level when you move. Find out if there is a local branch of any of the appraisal organizations nearby. That's the best way I can think of to market yourself to your peers if you need to find a mentor or a firm to work with. Find out if there is a local chapter of the Mortgage Bankers or Mortgage Brokers and go to meetings, that's a really good way to market yourself to new clients.