Commercial Construction (Houston, Dallas, San Antonio: condos, relocate to, residential)

[Richgatehouse]

My family and I wish to relocate to the Austin area from California. Wanted to know if the construction industry was still going strong. I am a Construction Superintendent.

[AustinTexan]

Originally Posted by Richgatehouse

My family and I wish to relocate to the Austin area from California.

Moderator cut: OT

As far as commercial construction, I worked in that industry in Austin for more than 6 years before making the jump to residential construction and development. One thing you're going to realize about Commercial construction and especially in Texas, is that it's very much the "Good ole boys system" and network. It's very difficult to get into if you don't know someone and especially if you're not from here (Texas). I can tell you first-hand that the company I worked for didn't and wouldn't hire anyone that didn't have some inside track to local construction and/or didn't know someone who already worked for us. We never advertised for our open positions, they were ALWAYS filled by people the owners or employees knew. Your best chance would be to apply at companies that aren't local and I'm sure there are a lot of those, especially the downtown companies building the high-rise condos and such. Before you shut the door on other cities in Texas like San Antonio, Dallas, and Houston which are also experiencing phonomenal growth, do your homework. If you've got good experience and a good track record, you should be able to find something. Good luck.

[solid rock]

good luck in Austin, I just left there after 2 1/2 yrs of frustration