Now that I have a fixed budget item for my new car and calculated $365 per month for gas, I am starting to form a more solid budget for my relocation to York by the end of summer.

One of the hardest thing about relocating to a new part of the country is the unknown variables such as income, rent, and other expenses. To lessen the impact of such a move, it is a good idea to figure out your fixed budget items first so you can guesstimate your remaining expenses.

Not only will this help you determine what to expect in terms of your budget, it can help you determine the amount of salary you will need to make in your new location.

Transportation Budget

1. Car Lease - $300 (Fixed expense)
2. Car Insurance - $50 (Fixed expense)
3. Gasoline - $325 (Variable expense)

Boom! Right there, the car expenses alone would cost me $675 a month which means I would need to make $350 a week after taxes for two weeks to be able to cover these expenses.

It is very well possible I could squeeze a few dollars off these expenses with less fuel consumption and a lower interest rate.

For example, if I can shave off 10 gallons a month, that’s $50 right there, or 2 months of car payments I can put away into my emergency fund.

After all, I live in Massachusetts right now where the state insurance coverage laws make it one of the most expensive states. York is in Pennsylvania which tends to be a lower cost-of-living state. Last time I was in York, the fuel prices were about the same, give or take a few cents.

Rental Expenses

Rent will be the next biggest factor I have to consider when applying. The rent in York varies from the poor side of town to the good side of town for a 1 bedroom apartment from $400 to $600 a month, some with utilities and some without.

For now, I will use $600 as the highball figure. You can certainly bet I will shave the price as well as I can to bring the car and rent expenses to under $1000 a month.

There is an option of having a roommate but after previous issues with roommates, I am no longer interested in a roommate. At least not until marriage, that is, if that day ever comes. I do plan on buying a multi-unit rental but I am still about two years away from this opportunity.

1. Transportation - $675
2. Living - $600

Ka-BOOM! That’s $1275 a month right away. If I expect to make a minimum of $1500 a month after taxes, that would only leave me $225 for everything else. I am going to starve to death in York.

But for now, if I budget myself for this now and end up finding a place to live for $400 to $500 a month, I would be able to shave off $100 a month or $1200 a year, an equivalent of 2 to 3 months of rent per year which I can put away in my emergency fund.

Final Thoughts On My Budget…

Even though the economy is pretty gosh darn lousy, and the cost of living seems downright high, there are ways I can squeeze my budget to save money and put that money away into my emergency fund which is what actually makes me confident about my move to York.

Not only will I be moving with at least 2 month’s worth of emergency funds, I would be able to move with a defined budget and know what I need to make and squeeze to get ahead for the next step in my plans.

Working is not an issue for me, I am in good health, capable of working 70 to 80 hours a week (I used to work 110 hours a week on a ship). It is really more a question of how to be more aware of the opportunities I have in York to save money and maximize my cash flow to get to the next level.

One major expense I will have to figure out how to deal with is the tuition should I be fortunate to return to college and finish my degree to a point where I can secure an opportunity to increase my cash flow.

What other expenses do you considered to be fixed budget items?