Quote Originally Posted by Cigars n scotch View Post
Hey Deerfield...curious on how you prioritized what you needed to do and how you're conducting your house hunting...We thought about renting for like a 6 mo lease so it would get us down there and then we could look at many places.
Cigars – Priority is being a great employee. Only way I know how to accomplish that is to leave the family and immerse myself in a new job.

First time was in the early nineties, when I left Illinois in the month of September for an assignment in DC with the Justice Department. My wife stayed in Illinois with the two boys (ages 5 and 3). Before leaving, I sold the house and put our stuff in storage. She and the boys moved in with her mother. I needed very little and lived on the cheap. I was able to work long days without guilt and use weekends to search for permanent housing. I vividly remember the Saturday afternoon I called her, thoroughly discouraged by housing costs and fruitless search results. She encouraged me to keep looking. Not long after, I found a development in its early phase located south of Quantico VA that fit our budget. We moved into the new house in February and had a great experience. Did not use the services of a realtor.

With a change of administration in the White House, I had an abrupt departure from the Justice Department. I put the family (then three boys) on a plane to Illinois and stayed behind to pack up. Thankfully, house sold quickly. Used a realtor. We put our stuff in storage in Illinois and moved in with her mother while figuring out the next chapter. Found my way into banking and eventually bought a house in the same town where her mother lived.

This time around, it’s the same priority. Immerse myself in the new job and work long hours. Family will follow. It may take six to nine months. I am living in a hotel for a couple of weeks while looking for interim housing. Again, I need very little and can live on the cheap. The boys are older now (26, 24, and 19), so don’t need to factor in schools and such to the same degree. For her, want reasonable access to Costco, Whole Foods, and Trader Joes, and close by to Starbucks. I want lake proximity. Compared to twenty years ago, the main difference with this search is the Internet. I use it to pull data of all sorts and search the sale and rental markets. Like the move to DC, this is an area about which I know nothing. So, I get in the car and drive, drive, drive.

If you are looking at long-term satisfaction, then I think your idea of renting for six months is spot on. Yes, on net it may add to your expense, but it gives you plenty of opportunity to learn the area, decide what you like best, and make an informed decision. - Deerfield