Living near to where you work

Discussion in Misc & Others started by Gelsemium • May 2, 2014.

  1. Gelsemium

    GelsemiumWell-Known Member

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    Have you done the maths on how much you spend by living away from the place where you work? How much would you save per year if you walked to work? Would that savings be enough to rent/buy a better place and closer to your job?
     
  2. whnuien

    whnuienActive Member

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    You are right, that is why my husband prefers to walk to his office because we know we can save more out of that. We need to move to a bigger house once our baby grows older so she can have more space to move around. And also we can more even closer to his office hopefully.
     
  3. Denis Hard

    Denis HardWell-Known Member

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    The downside of that is:

    In some places, the flats/apartments etc, that are closest to town tend to be the most expensive. The owners also factor in the transportation cost and the rent you'll pay will be almost equal to one who gets to town by bus but less if you were to use your own car [so if you were planning on that you could save some cash].

    So, IMO, if the rent is higher than it would be elsewhere then you wouldn't save that much after all.
     
  4. isabbbela

    isabbbelaWell-Known Member

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    I live pretty close from work, it would be a 5 minute drive without traffic and probably 20 minute walk. However I would not walk here cause it's a steep walk and not the safest place on earth. I do save up a lot on gas though from where I used to live before, it used to take me 30 minutes without traffic to get to work! I'm pretty content now with the distance and how much I have to spend on gas!
     
  5. deathbyprayer

    deathbyprayerActive Member

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    Yes and you can save an awful lot of money if you can just walk to your office everyday. You don't have to commute, that's a few dollars saved. If you already bought a house near your work place then you don't have to worry about the rent or any of that stuff, being late isn't a problem anymore since it's not that far, you can work over time and never worry about getting home late and you can come home for lunch.
     
  6. Gelsemium

    GelsemiumWell-Known Member

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    That's true, the closest to the center, the more expensive it is. Or you had the luck of invest in the right time or you need to pay for your spot, but doing the maths correctly has to involve transportation expenses you would stop to make plus the intangible life quality of living near to work.
     
  7. Athenagdlyt

    AthenagdlytActive Member

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    Living in a place close to where you work is probably the most ideal thing for people who want to save money on transportation expenses. However if you're a very private person who don't wish to be seen by your workmates while you take out the trash or bring out your dog to pee while in your pajamas, then being too close to your workplace might not be ideal for you.

    The best deal for me would be given free accommodation by my boss. Maybe this can only happen if my work involves being a building superintendent or a property manager of an apartment building.
     
  8. Peninha

    PeninhaWell-Known Member

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    I agree, it is ideal to live close to where we work and those who are fortunate to do it have no doubt more available time and eventually more quality of life. On the other hand, if you live and work in the center of a big city you probably live in a much smaller space than you would if you lived outside the big cities, but that's really a matter of what you prefer to do with your life.
     
  9. johnnear

    johnnearActive Member

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    Yes! I would give anything just to have a place a few walks away from my work place. Besides the obvious, there are a lot of benefits in having a workplace close to home, there are the health benefits since walking is good for you, the financial cost cuts, since you don't have to worry about commute and you can eat dinner/breakfast on the fly without worrying about getting home/work late.
     
  10. sidney

    sidneyWell-Known Member

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    I live in an area where there are lots of employment opportunities, so I really don't have to travel far to work. But yeah, I agree that living close to where you work is more convenient and can save you a lot of money on transportation and if you live really close, food expense. If I must work far from where I currently live, then I will just find a bedspacer ad, so that I will pay cheaper rent fees.
     
  11. Hedonologist

    HedonologistActive Member

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    I live about 1.5 miles away from work, so I spend maybe £10 per week in diesel for commuting. Actually I sometimes carpool so it's even less than that. I think with some jobs in some places like London, living far away is preferable, as housing costs are extreme, even for a very small place, and living just 30 miles away can make a massive difference.
     
  12. Gelsemium

    GelsemiumWell-Known Member

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    Come on, Hedonologist, 1.5 miles is not that much, can't you walk that distance? I think that if I worked at that distance (from my job to my work is just a little under 1 mile, not so much less and I walk to work) I would walk. Sometimes we take more or less the same time and it's way more cheaper, not to mention the fact that it's quite healthy to walk 3 miles per day, in your case.
     
  13. Strykstar

    StrykstarActive Member

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    I live pretty far away from my job, I spend maybe $200 on transportation and gas but a house like mine but closer to work would be at least $300 more in rent so I guess I'm just trading my commuting time for that price difference.
    I don't mind the commute, it gives me some free time every day to read something, listen to some podcasts or even catch up on some sleep :) (I go by train)
     
  14. Kazix

    KazixMember

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    I live like 2km away from my work (a little more than 1 mile). I still use my car since I sometimes need to drive around for my job. If I didn't have to, then I would use my bicycle more often. At least in good weather.
     
  15. Pat

    PatWell-Known Member

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    The trend in my area is to live close to your job to be close to the entertainment and the happenings in the city. Having a car in the city is very expensive for parking and tickets if you get one.

    The new apartments that have been built around the Metro system helps to get the people back and forth. The apartments are small and expensive.
     
  16. Aprax

    ApraxMember

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    Living in the area can be a huge difference. Commuting what should be 45+ minutes each way to/from your work can easily take over two hours of your time each day. Being near work means reliable timing, plus if its a nice neighbourhood you have everything you need immediately.
     
  17. Gelsemium

    GelsemiumWell-Known Member

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    This is pretty common in people that live away from their jobs. My brother-in-law for example, he lives 100 Km (62,5 miles) from his job and he always sleeps in the train, it's a part of his routine. I don't know if I would give two or three hours of my everyday just to go to work and return, it just seems too much when I walk 15 minutes and I'm at work.
     
  18. 003

    003Well-Known Member

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    It's really a must to consider your workplace to wear you live. If where you work is too far to where you live, then chances are you would have to spend a lot more money for your transportation, not to mention the exhaustion of commuting and of driving. It can also weaken your immune system, which can have you spend more!
     
  19. Gelsemium

    GelsemiumWell-Known Member

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    I live in a relatively small flat and in these last days I've been seeing online other flats here in Lisbon, some of them are wonderful and twice as big as mine, I even think that with an effort (and a loan for another 50 years ahah) I could afford them, but it's not the same location and I love to live in this place, I have everything I need around me and I guess that worths it's price in gold...
     
  20. deansaliba

    deansalibaActive Member

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    Well since I work from home I am lucky that I don't have to travel. But when I did used to have a proper job I would RUN the route there and back every day, on average the workplace would be about 3-5 miles away and back then I was a very keen long distance runner and it was great training for me. I saved a few hundred pounds a month by not buying a travel card to use public transport. :)