Relocation can be a costly prospect.

If you’ve got a lot of money banked, and your current job or new job provides a good salary, you can buy a home wherever you’re moving, but that shouldn’t be your first option. Presumably, if you had money to spare, you probably wouldn’t be moving somewhere entirely different for work. It can also be difficult to determine exactly how long you’ll be in this position, as the job market can flip on a dime, especially these days. Before you go and buy an entirely new house, consider renting a home or apartment. It can be a nice apartment if you care about that, but the point is that you shouldn’t go all-in on what may be a temporary situation.

Once you’ve definitively committed to the move, it’s time to balance that checkbook. Moving gets more expensive the more stuff you bring and the further you go, so if the budget’s tight, you may need to ditch a few things. In addition to moving-related costs like hiring movers and travel, you’ll also need to factor in important duties like changing your address and updating your accounts. If you use a national bank like Bank of America, your account should be able to follow you no problem, but if you use a local institution, you’ll need to get that money transferred somewhere else.

It’s not fun to attempt a long-distance move, but as they say, you have to go where the jobs are. Hopefully, whatever opportunity you’re moving for will pay for itself in short order.