so, what does that mean for me, budget wise?

well, as of this moment, i have ~$2850 in the bank. another $650 is $3500.

so, subtracting my $1000 buffer out, i have $2500 to spend on the move - including last, but not first, which will come to me at the beginning of the month. if i work in the next $1150, that's more like $3500+, for moving costs, first & last.

if i find something in another city close to here - niagara, hamilton - for $650-700, that leaves me with close to $2000 to move there with. i should come out ahead on that. do i want to?

on the other hand, if i subtract out $300 from the $3500, i'm left with $3200 to apply. that needs to include first and last, and i was thinking it would make sense to apply some kind of concept of inflation, but that doesn't really add up - any increase in rent is going to also inflate, at a higher level, so, no matter how i look at it, it's eventually going to run out. i mean, that is obvious, but actually doing the math pulls out a trivial rent increase - $25-50 - as worth looking at.

so, i can't really look at this like that. i'm still basically looking at the same price range - which is around $700 preferably, and $800 max. if the payout was more in the $5000 range, i could look at something more expensive; it isn't.

it does open up a more serious ability to move....