Plans to Move Out After COVID-19 Subsides

I’m not in any rush to move out. I don’t have to. I currently live with my parents. It took me some time to get used to, after having lived in Korea for a little over a year on my own (back in 2015-2016). There’s pros and cons to living with parents, and although I don’t mind it, I think it’s better for me to live independently again. When I’m on my own, I feel more motivated to be social, to create new habits, to try new things, to travel, and more. And, I think I would feel more comfortable creating songs or YouTube videos for example, which could contribute to my livelihood.

I’ve looked into cities that have lower costs of living. For example, the rent is cheap in Oklahoma City, and the cost of real estate in general is cheap in El Paso. I think I’ve also read that Texas has no income tax. I think in the short-term, I would move to a place that is cheaper to live. It might be anywhere from 6 months to 3 years. And then as I would grow my income, I would look into places that seem interesting.

Even though I’m looking for a place where the rent or cost of real estate is inexpensive, I still want to be careful about the climate. I prefer warm weather. I’m not a fan of the cold. When it’s cold, I don’t feel like moving or doing anything. And also, I wouldn’t have to necessarily sign up for a gym membership if the weather is nice outside year-round. I could just go for a walk, or eventually build up to a run.

I think by the time COVID-19 subsides in the US, I will be in my early 30s. That seems like a good time to live independently. With mental illness, it’s a little trickier, but these days I feel more stable. Speaking of which, I’d also want to live someplace where there is accessible mental health care.

I’m not interested in a roommate situation, but depending on my housing, I could provide an airbnb of some sort. And also, it’d be nice to have extra rooms for if friends or family visit. Or, have extra space for an office or workout room. I’m not too fussy about it. I don’t own a lot, and I know how to maximize small spaces. I lived in a studio when I was in Korea, and I could fit a bed, a piano, and a table with my computer/TV in the main space. So I’m sure that even if I ended up living in a studio again, it wouldn’t be an issue.

When you plan to move, it’s good to know what you’re looking for. I kind of already mentioned it earlier in this post, but this is my basic list of wants:

– Live by myself (though I’m open to renting out another room if I own it)
– Washer/dryer in-unit
– Mental health services available in the city that accepts insurance
– Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Aldi’s, or some good grocery store / farmer’s market with organic produce available in the city
– $750 or less per month if renting
– Preferably warm weather year-round

There’s other things I have to consider, like will I rely on public transit, walking, get a car, or use Uber/Lyft. It can vary from city to city. Some places are more public transit friendly. In other places, people might rely more on a car.

Previously, I’ve considered moving to places like Los Angeles, Phoenix, or Seoul. Los Angeles is a little out of my price range at the moment. Plus over there, most people recommend a car. I guess Phoenix and Seoul are technically not out of the question. Rent can be found on the lower side in both areas. I know Seoul is cold in the winter, but I’m willing to live there in the winters because of all the fun places you can visit there.

Moving out of the country is tricky because I’m still on meds. Though ideally, by the time I move out, I would be completely off meds. I’m at the lowest dose right now, and I’m not exactly sure if the medicine is doing anything for me (other than preventing me from shedding all the extra pounds I gained ever since being on meds).

Though if I wanted to live in Seoul, I’d need some kind of visa. I’d probably attend a language school there and would see how it is for 6 months to a year. Moving my stuff would be tricky, though not impossible. Some things, such as my keyboard (piano), I wouldn’t take along with me. I could probably find a used one cheap there. I’d have to look into how I could ship my desktop computer all the way over.

I’m not opposed to moving abroad, but I think for convenience sake, I’d like to stick to the 48 states for now. Plus, it’d be a way for me to see how well I could handle living on my own with mental health challenges.

I know I’ve talked about being opposed to jobs in the past. I’m open to it if it’s something that interests me. Like recently, I’ve looked into helpline jobs. I thought it’d be nice if I could help someone through a simple text or phone call. Right now, I’m just looking to volunteer to see what it’s like. But if I like it, I wouldn’t mind getting paid for it.

Ideally, I’d work remotely so that I could move whenever I feel like it. It’s nice when you have that flexibility. Helplines can be remote work.

I’m guessing it will be a year before COVID-19 really settles down in our country. So in the meantime, I’d like to continue finding ways to make money online, preferably through ways that are more passive.

I’ve considered maybe becoming a habit coach of some sort. Though first, I’d want to become good at completing 30-day challenges of my own. So far this year, I’ve succeeded at completing two 30-day trials. One was to blog every day for 30 days, which kind of happened spontaneously. It was before I revamped my blog, but I still have the old posts stored on my computer. I also got into a face care kind of routine. Other habits I got into were changing into daytime clothes every morning and going for regular walks (when it’s not cold at least). I’m maybe a week into my daily reading challenge. My next challenge might be to go on Instagram Live every day for a month.

Anyway, that’s a tangent. But basically, if I could become a habit coach online, I could work remotely. I wouldn’t have to rely on finding employment nearby. I could freely travel.

I thought about how cool it would be to live in a different location every so often. I don’t know if people do this now with COVID-19, though I’ve read of people doing this in the past. They’d live a few months somewhere, then would pack their bags and move somewhere else. I think if I did this, I’d live in each location for 6 months to a year at a time. How cool would that be if you timed it so that you would live in a warm place during the winter months?