200 Days until I move to the World!

[Wedway1971]

I'm making the plunge. My office allows telecommuting, so I have applied. I'm going to be packing up and moving from Washington to WDW. It's quite an adventure for me. I will know maybe two people in the area who have become CMs that I haven't spoken to in over ten years. So other than the people I meet through the Disney Internet community, I'm going blindly into this experience and starting my life over.

Now comes the fun stuff. : How do I research apartment complexes online? What do I keep and what do I sell/donate/pitch? How many times can I eat tonga toast for breakfast until I can't look at it anymore? Do I actually consider getting a room at the all-stars for a night just to experience evening extra magic hours? Should I just throw everything away and start over at IKEA?

I am seriously excited for this, and hope that any of you that have also done this can share some advice with me. Also, I REALLY hope I posted this in the right forum...I looked around and I think I did, but I'm a little bit of a disboards n00b still.

 

[roxysmum123]

If you're moving into Orlando, I'd contact their city hall or whatever you'd call it. Often they have packages and resources for new residents to help find housing etc. That'd be my first place I'd check.

Beyond that, color me totally jealous of this crazy-wonderful new experience you're about to have!

 

[wild.zinnia]

I'm so jealous. Good luck on your move.

 

[nurse.darcy]

Having just moved here just over a year ago, I can tell you that the move can be a bit daunting. Its hard to figure out what areas are good and bad. I live in the Dr. Phillips area and it is centrally located between all the amusement parks and everything is close. There are many nice areas out here and some areas you want to avoid. I would use Apartments.com and forrent.com to research apartments and then, if you have trouble figuring out exactly where the apartment is located, feel free to pm me. I can give you a heads up.

Congratulation on the move.

 

[POTCAddict]

Congratulations! I just did a very similar thing on Sunday! I had an opportunity to move from NJ to Tampa and took it! For no better reason than the adventure of it and because I'm so close to Disney! I can't help you with apartments but I can tell you that I had very little time to pack and as far as what to keep and what to "sell/donate/pitch" I took everything that daily makes me happy. Little stuff on my dresser that you wouldn't think to take the time to pack I brought with me and it makes me feel much better being here and not knowing a soul and having my things surround me. Everything else I threw away!! I threw sooo much away! I did give a lot away which made me feel a little better but If I had more time, I would have had a giant garage sale. I hope this helps a little and good luck with your move! Let me know when you get down here and I'll meet you in the world!

 

[DefLepard]

How do I research apartment complexes online?

I read this post very early this morning but got a bit busy at work to reply ...here is a helpful website

http://www.apartmentratings.com/
They have reviews and ratings for apt's just choose Fl and check any area near WDW

Good Luck

 

[MKCP1984]

Hey WEDway1971 and POTCAddict, you are doing what I can only dream about at this point!!! To bravely purge and move to the unknown, beginning a new life in Florida, is so inspiring!! How cool!!
I wish you luck with your move! Way too go!

 

[kittychatalot]

When me and dh moved from CT to Atlanta 7 years ago- we gave everything away! I did not want to move one home from CT all the way to Atl when a fresh start was what we were looking for. we bought the bare minimum of stuff from Ikea and rooms to go and love it! Everyhting matches and for the first time in my life our apartment looks like it is designed well! So my vote it for Ikea!

 

[kgibbler20]

I did the same thing 2 years ago. It was very hard to decide where to live. I pretty much just pulled up my job's address on yahoo maps and started from there. I also had my boss swing by and look at the place I chose. It's gated so he could only look from the outside. I do believe though that if you feel it in your gut follow it. If something doesn't seem right don't go. Otherwise be prepared for a most awesome experience. Love it here and I will never move back north.

 

[4 Ears]

First of all, CONGRATS to you!
I am jealous!
We had plans on moving down in about 2 years, looks like that may be more like a year now. For us anyway, we are really only taking personal items. Clothes, health/beauty stuff, a VERY few decorative items (mostly bought at Disney LOL), pictures... the rest we have got rid of or will shortly before we leave.
I would highly recommend going to therelocatedtourist, this is a family that just moved to the Celebration area at the beginning of the summer from WI. WONDERFUL couple, her name is Amy and has been so polite and answered my questions quickly. On their site they have lots of links.
Keep us upadated.
We are heading down in February to nail down the area we want to move to. We have it narrowed down fairly well from here but want to drive around the neighborhoods.
Good luck!!

 

[Wedway1971]

Thanks for the tips everyone!

First of all, CONGRATS to you!
I am jealous!
We had plans on moving down in about 2 years, looks like that may be more like a year now. For us anyway, we are really only taking personal items. Clothes, health/beauty stuff, a VERY few decorative items (mostly bought at Disney LOL), pictures... the rest we have got rid of or will shortly before we leave.

The toughest for me right now is purging books. I'm finding things to get rid of on a daily basis. I'm also trying to work some extra overtime and sell unneeded furniture on Craigslist. It will be easier to replace some of this once I'm moved, especially my IKEA dresser and bookcases. I have found that IKEA just doesn't move well...hence why it's cheap.

Plus it's amazing some of the stuff you discover when you start going through it. Do I really need this electric griddle that I have never used? Why did I buy this medicine ball? How many socks do I have without a mate?

I would highly recommend going to therelocatedtourist, this is a family that just moved to the Celebration area at the beginning of the summer from WI. WONDERFUL couple, her name is Amy and has been so polite and answered my questions quickly. On their site they have lots of links.

I love Amy's site. Hopefully they answer my questions soon.

Keep us upadated.
We are heading down in February to nail down the area we want to move to. We have it narrowed down fairly well from here but want to drive around the neighborhoods.
Good luck!!

I'm trying to do research on a nightly basis using google, city-data.com, the Orlando Sentinel, and Apartment reviews. It's incredibly tough to do this from such a distance.

Happy Saturday everyone. I'm off to bed so I can do some work around the house, log in to the office, and hopefully catch part of Mongello's 40 hour broadcast.

And lest I forget...Happy 40th WDW! If you are at MK today, have a Dole Whip for me.

 

[Principessa1284]

Grr.. long story short, I just typed this lovely long post about how my husband and I live near Orlando just north of WDW blah blah, and disboards decided to log me out and I lost my post... so... WELCOME! Let me know if you have any questions about any specific areas or apartment complexes - you'll want to look somewhere close enough so that WDW isn't a long trek, but far enough so that you're not too close to the tourist area. The traffic can just be so awful sometimes, especially on I-4. Winderemere, Independance, Champions Gate, Winter Garden, Dr. Phillips, and Hunter's Creek are all pretty nice areas not far from WDW. Feel free to PM me anytime!

 

[DekrRini]

First, how lucky to land a job in Orlando!

While I don't live in FL, I have made several long distance moves over the years. The best advice I can give you is to get rid of everything that isn't really, really, really important to you. The less you have to move, the better. Keep the sentimental thingsheirlooms, and the basics--bed, tv, clothes, etc--and sell or donate the rest. You'll be glad you did.

Vicki

 

[AnninIowa]

A friend from high school, his wife and two kids live in Hunter's Creek. They are minutes from everything but the town itself has a small-town feel.

 

[stitch1986]

wohoo!! we are doing same thing, we got approved of one apt but then realized it was to small so looking into a place in davenport!! congrats on the plunge!!

 

[EvilQueenT]

Having just moved here just over a year ago, I can tell you that the move can be a bit daunting. Its hard to figure out what areas are good and bad. I live in the Dr. Phillips area and it is centrally located between all the amusement parks and everything is close. There are many nice areas out here and some areas you want to avoid. I would use Apartments.com and forrent.com to research apartments and then, if you have trouble figuring out exactly where the apartment is located, feel free to pm me. I can give you a heads up.

Congratulation on the move.

i second that you have to be careful where you look...back in the day when i lived in orlando (moved away in 87) the dr phllips area was bad and you wanted to be in east orlando...of course back then there was actually an area between east and west orlando that no one lived and the theme parks were still kind of out away from where everyone lived lol. if you get the chance to take a trip i'd say have some areas in mind and actually get out and look around. drive by the schools, walk through the shopping centers, see what the traffic is like during peak times that sort of thing.

 

[karmutt]

I'm doing the same thing - more to save money than to be near the parks and all that. It's a location where I know people will want to come visit me.

I didn't/don't have plans to move until April or May, depending on how the short sale of my townhome goes, but I flew out a couple of weeks ago to make sure it was something I really wanted to do. I drove around some neighborhoods where my research turned up decently priced rental homes. It was really helpful, not only to see what the neighborhoods were like, but to get a feel for the area.

I also visited a manufactured home community that I spotted on Google Earth. I did a bit of research on it before I left, but since I wasn't planning on moving for quite a while, I went just intending to take a look at the community and to get a better understanding of manufactured homes in general. ...And now I'm in the process of buying a place. I found something that suits me almost perfectly and I'll be able to rent it out until I'm ready to move (it's furnished and in a community where short-term rentals are allowed).

I'm a bit nervous because I don't know all that much about the area it's in, but the community as a whole looked to be well cared for and quiet, which is what I was looking for. I did not want to live in an apartment. I'm getting a 2 bed/2 bath, comparable to what I have now, but with an awesome lanai (cats are going to love it) and a huge yard (which I don't have to mow myself) on a pond (no back neighbors... except snakes, mosquitoes, and the occasional alligator) and I'm not going to have anyone living on the other side of a wall or above or below me and I'll be able to fix it up however I want to.

I do plan on bringing most of my furniture, even thought the place is furnished. It looks like hotel furniture and it's just not "me." I'm an Ikea freak; it's my toy store. If I can't find something there that works for me, I build it out of bits and pieces I buy there (a coffee table top, a kitchen cupboard door, and the pneumatic base of an office chair can become a coffee table that raises into a laptop desk...). And their stuff can transport well. If you take it apart, not only does it save a ton of space, it goes back together as well as if you're putting it together for the first time. I've moved several pieces at least 2x. I'm getting rid of my books though. I have a really good quality scanner and I'm in the process of digitizing the ones that I can't find through digital libraries. Everything else I own will fit into the Upack cube I plan on using (I don't like clutter, so I don't have a lot of stuff).

My biggest concern is the 2300 mile drive with two cats... and possible my mother...

 

[Milagro23]

I'm waiting to hear back from WDW on a job I've applied for; it's only part time but I could always get a second job, if needed. It's like someone said earlier: my gut tells me to do it, and a friend of mine took the big-move plunge (moved here to Austin from CO) and it's done wonders for her. She's been super awesome supportive. I can't tell you how happy this thread has made me!! Such a relief. So much info!! Thanks, everybody!

 

[4 Ears]

Hello everyone, I was not logged in for a couple of weeks, my goodness you all have been busy!
Milagro, one reason we are moving closer to Disney I plan on working at Disney as well. At this point we plan on moving mid to late June (being ready to work in July) I have not applied for anything as of yet although I keep an eye on what is open. I have not applied because it was my understanding that Disney does hire people with an out of state address, did you have any problem with the application/hiring process due to a non Florida address?
We are still looking at Lakeland, Haines City, Davenport areas. Will make our decision in February...

Great info all, especially about what to take /not.

 

[DisneyCeliac]

Yes, another vote for Hunter's Creek! When I also moved down here for my job, I asked my new coworkers and the HR dept where the good places were, and nearly all mentioned Hunter's Creek. You're farther from downtown Orlando, but I'm sure it's more important to be closer to the World.

I currently live in a place called The Cottages at Hunter's Creek, they're very nice apartments, maintenance is always done the day I call it in, and you're less than a mile from 417, which is the fastest way to Disney from that area. I can make it from my doorstep to the gates of Epcot, HS, or AK in less than an hour (usually close to 35 minutes, depending on how far away I have to park). Plus there's a library branch just a few traffic lights north, as well as the best Mexican food in Orlando, Costco, and you're close to The Loop (a fairly major shopping area), and just a few miles south of the Florida Mall, Mall at Milennia, and Universal. Geez, I'm starting to sound like a commercial, so PM me if you'd like more info!