Living alone is nice, but...

[FootiePJ]

I recently moved out of my parents house, and have been living on my own in an apartment since August 2022. I moved to be closer to work, because I didn't want to be driving 25 miles each way, especially since I was starting graduate school, the travel time would have taken too much time away from studying. The downsides of living alone are:

1. My parents still want to visit me every weekend, so I have to put all my baby things away when they come over. This means I have to put my stuffed animals away where they can't be seen, I have to hide my diapers, which are usually in the linen closet, I have to hide my sippy cups, which are in the refrigerator, or in the kitchen cabinet, and I have to be sure I don't have any pacifiers laying around.

2. It is very expensive living alone. I pay $1600/month for a 1-bedroom apartment. Once you factor in internet and electricity, it adds another $175/month. I am also paying $400/month to iTeach Texas for my alternative certification, so after I get paid I have less than $1400/month to live off of. It makes it very hard to save any money for retirement or general savings. I am also in need of another SUV, because mine is falling apart.

Once my lease ends, I am going to have to move into a long-term Airbnb rental, so that I can save some money, but there are a couple of downsides to this:

1. I won't be able to walk around in just a shirt and diaper anymore, and I won't be able to drink from my sippy cups anymore.
2. I will have to share a restroom with who knows how many people.
3. I will have to worry about others entering my room, when I am not there, sure all the room have locks on them, but locks can be easily picked.

Overall, the benefits outweigh the risks, because I can get a room rental in a house for about $800 month, so I can save about $900/month by getting an Airbnb rental or something similar.

 

[ShyBoo81]

Congrats on getting that new apartment! Sounds super expensive living on your own, but its definitely worth it for that sweet taste of freedom while in littlespace!

Maybe its not necessary, but I highly appreciate you for being so open about your monthly expenses. I plan to move out someday like you so its good to have a general idea of how much money I need to save up

 

[SparkyDog]

I recently moved out of my parents house, and have been living on my own in an apartment since August 2022. I moved to be closer to work, because I didn't want to be driving 25 miles each way, especially since I was starting graduate school, the travel time would have taken too much time away from studying. The downsides of living alone are:

1. My parents still want to visit me every weekend, so I have to put all my baby things away when they come over. This means I have to put my stuffed animals away where they can't be seen, I have to hide my diapers, which are usually in the linen closet, I have to hide my sippy cups, which are in the refrigerator, or in the kitchen cabinet, and I have to be sure I don't have any pacifiers laying around.

2. It is very expensive living alone. I pay $1600/month for a 1-bedroom apartment. Once you factor in internet and electricity, it adds another $175/month. I am also paying $400/month to iTeach Texas for my alternative certification, so after I get paid I have less than $1400/month to live off of. It makes it very hard to save any money for retirement or general savings. I am also in need of another SUV, because mine is falling apart.

Once my lease ends, I am going to have to move into a long-term Airbnb rental, so that I can save some money, but there are a couple of downsides to this:

1. I won't be able to walk around in just a shirt and diaper anymore, and I won't be able to drink from my sippy cups anymore.
2. I will have to share a restroom with who knows how many people.
3. I will have to worry about others entering my room, when I am not there, sure all the room have locks on them, but locks can be easily picked.

Overall, the benefits outweigh the risks, because I can get a room rental in a house for about $800 month, so I can save about $900/month by getting an Airbnb rental or something similar.

$1600 for a 1 bedroom? Is that US $?
Dang that's super expensive especially since it isn't including utilities

 

[FootiePJ]

$1600 for a 1 bedroom? Is that US $?
Dang that's super expensive especially since it isn't including utilities

Yes, that is in US Dollars. I live in DFW, so rent around here is expensive. I don't even live in a high-income area, the neighborhood elementary school for my apartment complex has 40% of the students who come from economically disadvantaged families.

 

[SparkyDog]

Yes, that is in US Dollars. I live in DFW, so rent around here is expensive. I don't even live in a high-income area, the neighborhood elementary school for my apartment complex has 40% of the students who come from economically disadvantaged families.

Dang that's so pricey
I live in a city of a million and for that $ you can get 3 bedroom 2 bath & garage with utility's included + 200-300 dollars a month off
Could you move outside the city a bit and commute to work?
I didn't know Airbnb did long term
Sounds like not much fun with people comming & going

 

[mark28277]

I pay 1800 a month for a 1 bedroom. I only make 23.10 per hour. I recently cut my internet and that is saving me 75 dollars a month. Luckily I am still able to max out my 401k through bonuses I receive throughout the year. I once lived in a place and paid 1300 a month which is probably the lowest you will find in this city but every time I came home from work late at night there would be these super big roaches everywhere and to make matters worse they would even be inside my apartment. Once I turned on the light I would see them scurry around especially in the kitchen and bathroom. I just had enough so for me paying 1800 a month is well worth it. Also if I was in a situation like yours I would seriously consider moving to a different area of the country where rent is much less and quality of life is better. That’s assuming you are able to get a transfer. Best of luck

 

[FootiePJ]

Dang that's so pricey
I live in a city of a million and for that $ you can get 3 bedroom 2 bath & garage with utility's included + 200-300 dollars a month off
Could you move outside the city a bit and commute to work?
I didn't know Airbnb did long term
Sounds like not much fun with people comming & going

I live in an apartment about 20 miles north of downtown Fort Worth, and if I move any further, I will be driving as far as I was when I was living with my parents.

 

[Mickey]

I paid $700/mo for a 2 bedroom apartment in Wichita Falls. I don't think I could have afforded $1600 and I make quite a bit, at least I think. My house payment now is only a little bit more than $1000 and it is a huge house. You could try look at a small house, I don't know how it is in the big city though so maybe that is bad advise.

 

[SparkleAlchemist]

Since you are in an urban area, I'd advise maybe looking on FetLife and seeing if you could find a kink friendly roommate. I'm lucky in that both friends I've lived with have been accepting of my little side so I don't have to hide stuff. However I also know multiple abdls that found each other in the local community and then decided to rent a place together. Not having to hide is nice, but rent is expensive. I don't think I could afford a place on my own and I make an ok amount.

 

[Dragon64]

My one bedroom apartment is $1800 per month + $100 for utilities + $200 for internet and TV

 

[mark28277]

+freedom of wearing diapers around your apartment. +getting diapers shipped to your apartment. + inviting other ABDL’s over or anyone that you meet on those dating apps.

 

[IDKaLittle]

Rent has gotten stupid expensive in large cities. I’m paying $2500/mo USD with a roommate for a 2 bedroom house ~1000 sq/ft and that’s on the low end of the scale. One bedroom apartments here are between $1500-2000 depending on where. You might be able to find a studio apartment (just one room in total, with a bathroom) for $1500.

 

[MetalDan86]

I pay 1800 a month for a 1 bedroom. I only make 23.10 per hour. I recently cut my internet and that is saving me 75 dollars a month. Luckily I am still able to max out my 401k through bonuses I receive throughout the year. I once lived in a place and paid 1300 a month which is probably the lowest you will find in this city but every time I came home from work late at night there would be these super big roaches everywhere and to make matters worse they would even be inside my apartment. Once I turned on the light I would see them scurry around especially in the kitchen and bathroom. I just had enough so for me paying 1800 a month is well worth it. Also if I was in a situation like yours I would seriously consider moving to a different area of the country where rent is much less and quality of life is better. That’s assuming you are able to get a transfer. Best of luck

Sounds a little like my experience in New Orleans, where cockroaches are called “palmetto bugs” … thought one was a nice the first time I saw one out of the corner of my eye.

 

[TheBob]

$1600 for a 1 bedroom? Is that US $?
Dang that's super expensive especially since it isn't including utilities

$1600 gets you an outhouse in SoCal.

 

[CheshireCat]

Keep an eye out for a homeowner with a mother-in-law suite they want to rent out. It gives you total privacy: your own entrance, bathroom, and kitchenette. Something to consider.

 

[longallsboy]

I recently moved out of my parents house, and have been living on my own in an apartment since August 2022. I moved to be closer to work, because I didn't want to be driving 25 miles each way, especially since I was starting graduate school, the travel time would have taken too much time away from studying. The downsides of living alone are:

1. My parents still want to visit me every weekend, so I have to put all my baby things away when they come over. This means I have to put my stuffed animals away where they can't be seen, I have to hide my diapers, which are usually in the linen closet, I have to hide my sippy cups, which are in the refrigerator, or in the kitchen cabinet, and I have to be sure I don't have any pacifiers laying around.

2. It is very expensive living alone. I pay $1600/month for a 1-bedroom apartment. Once you factor in internet and electricity, it adds another $175/month. I am also paying $400/month to iTeach Texas for my alternative certification, so after I get paid I have less than $1400/month to live off of. It makes it very hard to save any money for retirement or general savings. I am also in need of another SUV, because mine is falling apart.

Once my lease ends, I am going to have to move into a long-term Airbnb rental, so that I can save some money, but there are a couple of downsides to this:

1. I won't be able to walk around in just a shirt and diaper anymore, and I won't be able to drink from my sippy cups anymore.
2. I will have to share a restroom with who knows how many people.
3. I will have to worry about others entering my room, when I am not there, sure all the room have locks on them, but locks can be easily picked.

Overall, the benefits outweigh the risks, because I can get a room rental in a house for about $800 month, so I can save about $900/month by getting an Airbnb rental or something similar.

Wow. I'm really proud of you. 💜💜🤗 I remember you were saying you were evaluated as being on the emotional / social age level of a 4 to 6 year old. Yet you were able to move out on your own, something I have been totally unable to do even though I keep striving to do so. You mentioned you paid $1600 a month in rent. That's quite a lot, but not as expensive as some places on the West Coast. In my area, a one bedroom / one bath apartment will cost you $3,000 a month. That's $36,000 a year!! Look, here where I am from, even if you make $100,000 a year (6 figure income), $36,000 would be already 36% of your income. All realtors, mortgage lenders, and teachers tell me that you aren't supposed to spend more than 35 to 40% of your income on rent or on mortgage payments. It's crazy. It's likely 50% of nondisabled adults here are probably living with their parents. More than a million people have left my state in the last 2 years, people can't afford to live here, unless they bought their house 15-35 years ago or they live with their parents.

I wanted to move to the Carolinas for quite a while, but so far I haven't been going anywhere yet, plus I do have Classic Autism.

You also can do things I can't do. You can drive a SUV or a car. My attention span is so bad that I can't even do that. 😢 I can't even concentrate for barely 20-25 minutes.

Maybe I'm even more behind than being 4 1/2 years old emotionally and socially.... I don't know, some friends with higher functioning Autism think I'm more like a 3 year old than a 4 1/2 year old emotionally and socially. One of my old math community college instructors who has known me 28 years, thinks I am emotionally and socially like a 2 year old - or at least, I was like that when I took his Finite Math class he was teaching many years ago. I have no view of behind and will block your view of a blackboard in a classroom (unintentionally) to write stuff that was written on the blackboard to write into my notebook, much like how a 2 year old unintentionally blocks the view of his or her siblings or playmates who are watching the TV.

Best wishes to you, my friend. 💜💜💜 I hope you succeed in whatever you hope to do.

- longallsboy

 

[longallsboy]

$1600 gets you an outhouse in SoCal.

Yeah, in other areas of California, too - and even Oregon. $1,600 a month in Southern Cal for a 1 bedroom 1 bath apartment would be cheap compared to some other places in CA, like the SF Bay Area, where you can expect to pay easily double that amount for a 1 bedroom / 1 bath studio apartment!! 😱😱😢😢 It's crazy.

As bad as the prices for apartments are in Southern Cal, it's not even nearly as bad as it is 350 miles north, in the Bay Area!!

- longallsboy

 

[TheBob]

Yeah, in other areas of California, too - and even Oregon. $1,600 a month in Southern Cal for a 1 bedroom 1 bath apartment would be cheap compared to some other places in CA, like the SF Bay Area, where you can expect to pay easily double that amount for a 1 bedroom / 1 bath studio apartment!! 😱😱😢😢 It's crazy.

As bad as the prices for apartments are in Southern Cal, it's not even nearly as bad as it is 350 miles north, in the Bay Area!!

- longallsboy

Blame silicon valley. Greedy landlords tend to screw everyone no matter their income.

 

[longallsboy]

I live in an apartment about 20 miles north of downtown Fort Worth, and if I move any further, I will be driving as far as I was when I was living with my parents.

I used to listen online to an actual radio station in Dallas / Fort Worth from 1998 to 2005. It was called KMEO 96.7 FM and it was licensed to the city of Flower Mound, north of Dallas, Texas. Their slogan was "Unforgettable Favorites" and "Memories" and played soft oldies and soft rock from the 1950s to 1980s. Loved the station. They called themselves "Memories 96.7". I listened to it a lot on the internet and once when I was at DFW airport on my Walkman while I was headed somewhere else. The station is still licensed to Flower Mound. They are a talk radio station now.

I'm from the DFW area originally myself. I was born actually in Dallas itself, and I lived in (at the time, a small town, in the mid 70s, but now a big city), Plano. Moved away when I was a 19 month old baby, then lived in Upstate New York for 8 months, then moved to the West Coast at age 2 and a few months. I'm now in my mid 40s chronologically and want to move to the Carolinas, South Carolina more preferably.

- longallsboy

 

[SparkyDog]

$1600 gets you an outhouse in SoCal.

Probably a reason I don't live there haha