South Dakota in a Nut Shell

As most of you already know I made a huge judgement to move from Michigan to South Dakota for a job. So far I've been in this new state for 32 days and wanted to share some things I didn't realize/thought was interesting about the state.

• Water - Coming from a place with hard water the water in our apartment is like a dream.  My skin and hair feels cleaner and my hair is growing like crazy.  I had a bad reaction to one of the hotels we stayed at but I guess they have an extra detergent in the water.

• Airport - This isn't the first time I've lived in a city with an active airport but this is definitely the closest I have been to one. The noise is there. Nothing too annoying. The sights are pretty awesome though since they fly so close.

• Garage - Almost every apartment complex in this city comes with a garage.  WHAT! Why isn't Michigan jumping on this band wagon? It's really nice to be able to wake up in the morning with a car in the garage even when living in an apartment.  We haven't really utilized ours yet but only because its on the opposite side of the parking lot though.

• Hills - There are hills...everywhere....and there big.  Taking trips through town can almost feel like a roller coaster! The sights from the top of a couple hills are amazing and I was pleasantly surprised to not see a whole bunch of flat plains.

• Wind Chill/Wind - Going to from cold to cold wasn't anything new but going from cold to blustering wind cold is a big change.  The wind is always whipping and the temps have been in the negatives for most of the our time here due to the wind chills.

• Burbs Vs. Country - In Michigan there are city suburbs that make up a large metropolis and then you can go for a ride into the country.  In the country there are farm houses, small family homes and big family homes.  In South Dakota there really isn't a country.  It's either burbs or fields on the way to another burb.

• Taco Johns - Think if Taco Bell and Arby's make a baby.  Interesting mixes.  Expensive prices.  Went once and haven't gone back.

• Schools - The area scores of the schools in my area is low in reading and math.  I was a bit concerned that my son wouldn't be challenged enough (he excels mostly in reading and math).  I'm keeping an eye on the situation but there isn't anything I can really do right now.  I also noticed that the kids kind of run free and wild. There isn't much supervision before and after school. We often drive up to the school just to witness fights and i hear an awful lot of swear words when passing by. I'm hoping the changes teach my son to make good choices independently. He seems to be doing better behaviourly in the clasroom.

• No Meijer, Kogel, Faygo - I've got over my longing for Meijer because there are alot of comparable stores (i've mostly been shopping at my local Hy-Vee).  I'm sure I'll miss Michigan brands soon but not yet.

• Average house price - Being a person who wants to own there own home soon I knew moving out here that the housing costs were going to be higher.  The average cost of a home that meets our requirements (garage, two plus bedroom, two plus bathroom, decent neighboorhood, house isnt too old) is at least $200,000.  To find something with land is almost impossible without moving quite a ways away from the city.  It will be interesting when we actually go to purchase something.  I was glad to see that the morages, first time home buyer iinitiatives and other programs are rated to match. I applied for a rural housing loan in Michigan and was approved for $120,000 (once I worked up my credit score). Here a first time home buyer program with assistance has a limit of $220,000.

Would you move for a job?

Here’s the scenario: After a conversation with your sister where she expressed interest in moving out of state you turn to your husband (or significant other) and ask “would you move out of state”?  The quick answer for us was yes.  Instead of the normal parameters of sticking within the state I changed my sights to the whole United States (and dabbled with the idea of moving to some where in Europe) and started searching for jobs in areas that I felt we would be most likely to succeed. That’s when it sank in.  Were we taking the right things into consideration?  Were we ready?

Depending on your personal situation the questions you could be asking are endless and at times feel more like soul searching.  Here are a couple questions that I feel are important to ask yourself, your significant other, your children or your potential employer:

• Do we have permanent ties?  This boiled down to do we have legal reasons why we can’t move away (i.e. child support, court order and divorce agreement). Give you self plenty of time to settle this issues.
• Can we afford it?  I’m sure others are in my situation where the economy hasn’t been kind to your bank account.  This question turned into “how much can we afford to lose” and “what will be gain”.  Be smart about financial planning and give yourself enough time to stock pile if you can.  Talk to employers up front about who will take care of relocation costs.
• Will the children be okay with the move?  I think my children are more pumped about the idea then we are!
• Is the economy worse or better?  If the economy is better than that’s great!  If it’s worse see if other aspects will outweigh the disadvantages.
• Is the job aligned to your professional goals? Knowing where you are and where you need to go in your career is important to know at all times, so if you haven’t done this in a while, do it now. Being able to gage if this opportunity will help you get to the next step is what you should focus on.
• Is the company reputable, reliable and set up for long term growth? Research the company’s website, blog, and social media.  Search their name in reputable publications like Forbe’s, The Wall Street Journal or the “it” magazine in your profession.  A plain old search in Google is a good place to start.
• Will I like the jobs location?  Opportunities can come to you from all across the globe so you’ll want to take into consideration the language barrier, climate, amenities and culture.  Again a plan old Google search will help you start collecting data.
• Am I forgetting anything?  Be sure to think of all the aspects of daily life that affect you, talk to family and friends and don’t stop researching even after you move.  After a conversation with my family I realized that I hadn't taken a couple things into consideration.

Remember: Don’t make a decision until you’re comfortable and ready!

Make a list, spreadsheet or any other type of document to look at the pros and cons, asses your expected budget or create a listing of the local schools, communities, and rates of important items.