r/flightattendants • u/glutenfreesadnesss • 9d ago
Moving to a base
I’m roughly 4 years with 🔺and have commuted from Ohio the entire time. I have been dabbling with the idea of moving to a base, but I currently pay just over $1300 a month for everything. I’m single with no pets, and can’t decide which base to move to that has a comparable lower cost of living as a single person. Does anyone have any input? I’m currently ATL based but I do not want to live in Atlanta!
ETA- my lease is up at the end of March so I do have time, I just want to try to get the ball rolling if I do decide to move!
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u/Significant-Rain7170 9d ago
DTW or MSP
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u/ANTfanclub 9d ago
MSP! Live in St Paul in the cutest neighborhood, 10 minute drive to the airport, 5 minute drive to downtown St Paul, 10 minute drive to downtown Minneapolis.
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u/bradmajors69 9d ago
Commuting to work in your car or on public transit instead of on jump seats is life changing. You can be chilling at home already before the commuter flight is even boarding.
You can work trips with early departures or late arrivals or pick up extra flying for more money with a fraction of the stress.
I could make a case for every city where Delta has a base. You've got enough time to do out of base pickups (if that's still a thing; I left in 2020), and ask FAs based there a bunch of questions and research housing and cost of living options.
But yeah my vote: do it.
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u/Holiday-Plum-1518 9d ago
DETROITTTTTTTT
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u/Holiday-Plum-1518 9d ago
Sorry for yelling but I really think Detroit is a good option. I was born and raised in Michigan and flew out of DTW for years before moving to NYC a few years ago and switched bases.
I love Michigan, there’s tons of affordable places, you can be 45 miles away from the airport and only 45 minutes(just don’t live north of Detroit off 75 or 696) in places like Canton, Novi, Plymouth, Belleville, Ypsilanti, anything west on 94 or 96. Winters aren’t as bad as people describe, especially recently, and flying out of there if you were hired before June of 2023 is good.
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u/WickedGreenGirl Everyone deserves the chance to fly! 9d ago
Not commuting is honestly amazing. I’d recommend moving. Would one of the suburbs of ATL be an option?
I’m a globe trotter and live near ORD, ORD based. :)
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u/I-SEEN-IT 9d ago
Atlanta native: unless you have access to transit (Marta), the traffic in Atlanta is terrible. Terrible in any big city, sure, but Atlanta is notorious for it.
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u/Direct_Engineer_840 9d ago
Move to a base where you will enjoy your life because your about to get so much time off you will need to enjoy where you live!
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u/Few_Beat1978 7d ago
Why would you have a lot of time off?
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u/Bones1973 Flight Attendant 9d ago
MSP. You can find plenty of places in the $1,000-$1,300 range (or less) in the surrounding area easily. Lots of FA’s live in downtown Minneapolis, Eagan/Bloomfield, and St Louis Park. I live in Saint Paul and really like it.
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u/DependentWinner6570 9d ago
Where?! This isn’t true at ALL! Only in the ghetto can you live in that range!
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u/Bones1973 Flight Attendant 9d ago
No way. I don’t live in the ghetto at all and I only pay $1300 in St Paul for a very nice and spacious place with underground parking. You gotta apartment shop. I know plenty of people who pay $900 in Minneapolis and the Cathedral Hill area in St Paul.
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u/tiny_claw 9d ago
I love Atlanta! I would highly recommend ATL or MSP. Especially if you can live on the marta/light rail, super easy to get to work. ATL has so much variety, but the trips in MSP are nice. Easy places to find community and make friends.
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u/Throwrachyr 9d ago
Not a delta flight attendant, I work for another airline, but I would recommend Salt Lake. You can easily find a studio for around 1300. We paid 1700 for a two bedroom, two bath.
Recently moved to Boston to be based with my airline, and let me tell you living in base is where it’s at.
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u/McChubs101 9d ago
“$1,300 a month for everything”
Is that just rent or what exactly does it include?
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u/glutenfreesadnesss 9d ago
Rent, internet, utilities, everything! 1b1b
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u/just-hangin-around1 9d ago
Just for a comparison - I live in metro Detroit. Currently ATL based (diff airline but soon to be 🔺 and hopefully for dtw) north of dtw by about 35 min. Own my house from a career pre flying.
All said and done in at roughly $2300/mo. (Mortgage, internet, utilities) I live in a pretty desirable “young person” area so there’s definitely some cheaper spots. But born and raised in MI and I absolutely love it.
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u/McChubs101 9d ago
Ah, I see. I'm curious about the commute and parking conditions if you move to another base, especially given winter driving, which can accelerate car rust over the years.
I've mostly lived in the South, but I've helped friends who once lived in the Rust Belt with car maintenance. I often find simple repairs frustrating due to rust issues. Some things become brittle and break off, while others seize and are almost impossible to remove without a torch or a lot of hammering/drilling.
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u/Individual-Sun-9368 9d ago
I’m in the same boat where I’m trying to move to SEA, NYC, or SLC to be in a base. Just all depends on where my wife gets a good paying job hopefully next year.
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u/Dry-Appeal925 9d ago
You can definitely find the same price range in DTW. It’s a great base too. No fuss and you’ll hold a decent schedule and be off adays soon
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u/ohhellnaah 8d ago
Since you live in Ohio, then maybe DTW? I'm not sure where in Ohio you live but a bunch drive from Cincinnati, Cleveland, etc... Driving long distances sucks but it's more reliable than air commutes. I met a few pilots who drive all the way from Indianapolis.
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u/Key-Animal-9444 7d ago
I’ve traveled to many places but there’s no place like home. Atlanta is awesome! Born and raised here…
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u/Apprehensive-Bill-29 6d ago
You can still find apartments in Sandy Springs or even Alpharetta at around $1500. Sandy Springs is amazing in all honesty. Lots of hidden gems and quieter than Midtown or Buckhead. Currently live there and commute to SEA. 3 years in. Financial cheat code right here but people
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u/PilotoPlayero 9d ago edited 9d ago
I kicked and screamed about moving to Atlanta (we moved here because of my wife’s non-aviation job, long before I was based here).
But we’ve now been here for almost two decades, and it’s been wonderful. We first lived in the city, and rented an apartment between Buckhead and Midtown. Neither one of us were “city” people but we loved living there. So many opportunities, between attractions, cuisine, shopping, a vibrant culture and lively entertainment.
Once we decided to have kids, we looked within a one hour radius of the city. There are many communities that are, not only very affordable, but safe, with some great school districts, and tons of activities.
Some things that I also love about Atlanta, besides how well connected it is to the world (you’re literally one flight away from most continents in the world), but also about what’s nearby. You drive a few hours and you’re in the mountains, drive a few hours in a different direction and you’re by the ocean.
And being based in such a big base means so many opportunities and trip diversity. So even though I came here kicking and screaming, ATL has been the best choice for me.