DD2020 moved to CA for her first job out of college. She rented apartment with roommate and bought nice new furniture for her bedroom and half of the living room furniture. Two month ago she accepted an offer with company in NY which originally was remote but now they ask her to move to NY and return to the office. She knew that it was not permanently remote position she was just not looking forward to move to NY. But she likes the job so she will move. Now the question. They pay $5k for her relocation. The estimate from moving company is more close to $6k. Nobody in our family moved for jobs so I would like to know how people do that. The options I see right now is for us to store her stuff somewhere at our house temporarily for few years because I believe she will eventually return to CA in a year or two. She will have to use her relocation funds to purchase furniture in NY which is not ideal because she will have to leave it there if or when she moves back to CA. Is there a cheaper way to get her stuff cross country?
It’s not worth moving the furniture. Either store or sell it.
She could go back to her HR and negotiate the relocation costs. It’s certainly close enough to ask for the extra $1K.
FWIW, my husband and I moved a number of times when we were young. Sometimes his company covered all the costs, other times we had to put out some of our own funds. It was always worth it to move in terms of career advancement.
This depends on how the relocation payment is structured. If it’s a straight $5k payment that she’s free to use as she pleases then yes she can use it to purchase furniture. But if they’ll only reimburse actual relocation expenses (i.e. cost of moving furniture, flights, temporary housing in NYC, etc) then it’s not an option.
I agree. Talk to HR to see if they can bump up the offer a bit. But be aware that she’ll have other moving expenses besides moving furniture.
Moving is a big decision, but early in one’s career definitely worth doing if it’s a better opportunity.
Frequent mobility is why IKEA furniture is so popular. Buy new stuff when you get there. Find the local FB pages where people sell and give away stuff.
This will also be taxable if it is just money paid to her. Often companies give a ‘settling in’ allowance to cover all kinds of expenses like getting a new driver’s license and registering your car, but if the company just hands you this money, it is taxable income. If they pay for the UHaul or moving truck, with actual receipts, there are some very specific limits (like number of nights of temporary lodging) but they can pay the exact amount.
If you do want to put a little sweat equity in the game and move the furniture with less expense, my two found that UHaul boxes were the best deal. Like PODs but cheaper. Pack the large wooden box yourself in the driveway and they deliver. How that works in NY, is for those from that part of the country to answer.
The firm I work for will pay moving expenses up to $5,000, actual costs, with receipts (so non-taxable). We have found, however, that about 65% end up dissatisfied with their new location and either end up leaving the job or moving back to be closer to family/friends, often quite soon after they’ve relocated, so now there are stipulations, and possible pay-back to the firm…90% payback if the employee resigns within a year, 50% within 2, 25% within 3. She should really understand what the relocation reimbursement entails.
While it is good for a young person’s career to take these opportunities if she’s already on the fence about moving to NY, I would invest as little as possible in the move itself. If her furniture is decent, store it in your home (I wouldn’t pay to store it) and replace it once landed.
Thank you all for your input. It seems that it makes little sense to move furniture cross country if she plans to move back after a year or so. She knows about repayment back of relocation and sign up bonus if she stays at this job for less then a year. There’s also vesting of RSU after a year and 401k match so she plans to stay for a year because this job is good for her career advancement and she really likes everything about it but location.
If it’s a temporary move, I’d look into CORT furniture rental. Or you could buy cheap furniture. Or maybe see if any relatives have extra furniture you can borrow. That said, if she has nice furniture that she likes, I’d definitely store it at your house. Or see if she does want to take it along.
Does she have to furnish her own place? Can she work her connections to see if a house/apt share is possible?
Just a word of caution. A friend rented furniture (I don’t know from whom), and ended up with an apartment fill of bedbugs and she had to throw out most of what she owned. Cheap Ikea may be a better bet than getting something used that could bring problems.
Could she find a rental in her new location that comes furnished? My daughter did a 6 month stint on the opposite coast and rented a furnished apartment. It made the most financial sense.
She might try that. Good idea
Ah good point! Renting a furnished apartment would be a good idea, especially if it’s not a long term move. Is the OP’s D going to have a roommate? If she just rents a room, that would only be one room to furnish…
She will have to and she also likes to have one roommate