Challenge Rating: Moving to Seattle w/o Job Lined Up (apartment, to rent)

[arthur_dent]

I've been reading threads on this board for a few days now (a lot of great stuff!) and wanted to get advice more tailored for my particular situation.

I'm a software developer in the Southeast with a Computer Engineering degree and around 2 years experience (mostly eCommerce work in the Microsoft stack). My brother lives in Seattle, and after visiting a few times I've fallen in love with the city. I left my previous job last year (with notice and on very good terms) intending to relocate to Seattle, but I had to take the past few months off to help with a family health situation.

Though that has now been resolved, I'm now concerned with the resulting employment gap and see two options moving forward: move without a job lined up so that I can apply aggressively with the local advantage, or take a position in the Southeast and try relocating again in a few years. I have savings for 3-6 months living expenses and family to stay with. Which do you all recommend? Thank you so much for the help!

tl;dr: software dev w/ small employment gap wondering how crazy it is to relocate to Seattle w/o job lined up (but with family in the area and some savings)

[Count David]

just. do. it.

[BaconBurgerTaco10]

Life is too short to go spend another few years saving up to make it work. Just go and you'll figure it out. You love Seattle.

[thedonwind]

If you have family to stay with in Seattle than there is really no rush. It would be a challenge if you were paying rent somewhere without a job. But that's not the case for you so you should be just fine.

[homesinseattle]

A good friend of mine just died way too young in an accident. Each day is precious. You have a place to stay here, come follow your dreams!

[amaiunmei]

I'm going to assume you are a full stack developer. If so, you will have little to no problems finding work.

My strong advice to you, however, is to search for jobs in the area with your skill set and reach out to the recruiters. Many recruiters are very helpful, especially as the market for developers is competitive and every recruiter wants to make money on pushing the next guy towards the next project.

A gap of a few months is NBD up here. People regularly take sabbaticals for whatever reason.

[Bolo99]

Ditto. This TS has it easy. Imagine heading to Seattle with no job/no friends/no relatives in the area, and finding an apartment to rent. This guy already has a place to live and crash.

Originally Posted by thedonwind

If you have family to stay with in Seattle than there is really no rush. It would be a challenge if you were paying rent somewhere without a job. But that's not the case for you so you should be just fine.

[VirtualErik]

If I had family or friends in Seattle, i would have been living there years ago, do it! I'm still working on my path to get me there. You have the path laid out, so do it! no regrets!

[arthur_dent]

Thanks everyone for all of the advice and support! I expected a lot more "never move without a job!" posts, so this has been really encouraging. It sounds like I need to get packing!

[perigee]

You've got family to stay with and you have a marketable skill set, hellz to the yeah, move! Our society is becoming acutely aware of people becoming caregivers, make sure you emphasize that in your cover letter and interviews.