For those who moved from out of state, how hard was it to find a job? (Tampa: transfer)

[danak13]

My SO and I are seriously considering a move to Tampa/St. Pete this summer. He is a CPA and I am an Office Manager. Since he makes considerably more than me, for us to be able to do this, he would have to find a job while out of state. For those who have done this and it wasn't a company transfer, how hard did you find it to find work?

[John Alecci]

My wife and I did this 5 years ago from Maryland. She was a teacher, and applied for a job in the summer, and found one pretty easily. Maybe she just had good luck, but I would think as a CPA he could find a job fairly easily. Not sure where you are moving from, but keep in mind, his salary may be lower here. No state income tax helps to offset this a bit, but still something to think about.

[MortonR]

CPAs, and for that matter, just about anyone in the financial industry, are paid poorly here compared to other major cities.

Unless you've got a specialty, CPAs are a dime a dozen here, so you really need something to stand out.

I would highly advise you to do some research and see what positions that you're seeking might pay in this area, as I'm betting they're lower than where you are now.

Finding work out of state is a tricky thing, as employers are not typically going to cover relocation and as a result, might be leery of people moving into the state and then bailing in short order. As soon as a prospective employer finds out you're not from the area they may back off or turn you down.

As a former hiring manager I can tell you that unless a candidate is really outstanding I'm not going to look at someone from out of state. Why? Because it's a major can of worms to deal with a new employee who is attempting to acclimate to the new position while doing the same with the area *and* in the middle of relocating their family and belongings. They're rarely focused on their job and can be sidetracked in short order if something is going south at "home" or with the process of moving.

That being said, if you're thinking about applying for positions here while living out of state, get a burner cell phone with a local (Tampa) area code. Use that as your contact number. Find a friend in the area you can use for a mailing address if you've got one. Worst case, use a PO box with a remailer, such as what the mailbox places like the UPS Store offer.

If you get a face to face interview, immediately disclose that you're relocating, which is why you have local contact information. if you don't tell me up front and I find out after the fact, your application goes in the bin.

Again, I urge you to look into what competitive salaries are in your field in the Tampa area. You might find that it's not worth it to take the hit.

Good luck,

RM

[Pragmaticus]

Originally Posted by MortonR

CPAs, and for that matter, just about anyone in the financial industry, are paid poorly here compared to other major cities.

Unless you've got a specialty, CPAs are a dime a dozen here, so you really need something to stand out.

I would highly advise you to do some research and see what positions that you're seeking might pay in this area, as I'm betting they're lower than where you are now.

Finding work out of state is a tricky thing, as employers are not typically going to cover relocation and as a result, might be leery of people moving into the state and then bailing in short order. As soon as a prospective employer finds out you're not from the area they may back off or turn you down.

As a former hiring manager I can tell you that unless a candidate is really outstanding I'm not going to look at someone from out of state. Why? Because it's a major can of worms to deal with a new employee who is attempting to acclimate to the new position while doing the same with the area *and* in the middle of relocating their family and belongings. They're rarely focused on their job and can be sidetracked in short order if something is going south at "home" or with the process of moving.

That being said, if you're thinking about applying for positions here while living out of state, get a burner cell phone with a local (Tampa) area code. Use that as your contact number. Find a friend in the area you can use for a mailing address if you've got one. Worst case, use a PO box with a remailer, such as what the mailbox places like the UPS Store offer.

If you get a face to face interview, immediately disclose that you're relocating, which is why you have local contact information. if you don't tell me up front and I find out after the fact, your application goes in the bin.

Again, I urge you to look into what competitive salaries are in your field in the Tampa area. You might find that it's not worth it to take the hit.

Good luck,

RM

I am not sure about these kind of advises. As a hiring manager, the last thing I want to see is dishonesty. It is very easy to figure out where the applicants are based on their application and where they are currently working. Why all this hassle? And looking like you are not honest. Red flag to me. If we are talking about 8 to 10/hour job in service industry, yeah, may be I can see how it may work. You could as well pack and move here to find those. But a professional job? We don't care where they are currently located as long as they are competent.

I also don't agree on the idea of employers favor locals. We look at talent, not where they are located. We have hired more than 50% of our professionals as an agency from out of state in the last few years. If you are a sucker employer, it doesn't matter where the employees come from, they will leave to a better opportunity no matter what. There is no really a correlation that makes people that relocated here will leave once they are here for better opportunity. A local hire with the same condition and same opportunity would leave too.

[MortonR]

I may not have provided enough context here...

When people are actively attempting to relocate to a given area, they'll often establish some sort of presence there. That tells me they're doing their due diligence in an effort to find their way around in a new city. I've done this, I know others who have done it. I don't consider it being dishonest or evasive.

As a former hiring manager in an IT environment where certain skills and abilities are in high demand, I need to hire someone who is laser focused on getting on board and able to hit the ground running. I don't want someone who is going to be distracted because their family is 1,000 miles away and they're the breadwinner who is also handling the logistics of the move/relocation. If I've got comparable candidates in front of me with the same skill set and credentials, the local is more likely than not to get the offer. They're here, they're established, and they're far less likely to be distracted by things outside of work.

RM