Should I just pack up and move to Colorado without a job offer? (Denver: rentals, find a job)

[Teckeeee]

Go for it, and expect a big pay cut, when you find a job.

[nep321]

Originally Posted by Colorado xxxxx

Go for it, and expect a big pay cut, when you find a job.

Yes, very true. If you were making $100K in DC, be prepared to get your pay slashed to about $70K for the same job.

[Timmyy]

Originally Posted by nep321

Yes, very true. If you were making $100K in DC, be prepared to get your pay slashed to about $70K for the same job.

With no debt 70K will go a long way. Go for it while you are young and single.

[nep321]

Originally Posted by Timmyy

With no debt 70K will go a long way. Go for it while you are young and single.

I'm not discouraging him from doing it. I'm just telling him not to expect nearly the same pay as he was making in DC. I agree that $70K is just fine if it means living somewhere you want to live.

[ArthurDaly]

Or .... you could take a few weeks off work and come out and see if you actually like Denver and the surrounding areas. Are you able to work remotely? If so stay even longer. I'd caution giving up a well paying "cushy" job. They're not that easy to fond these days. If you've managed to save $120k (and excellent job by the way) then things are not that tight.

[nep321]

Have you been to Denver? I can give you a brief opinion of it, coming from the east coast myself.

It's a nice area. Nice scenery for sure. However, it's extremely landlocked and isolated with no oceans nearby. It looks very brown and depressing in the winter, but the sunshine definitely helps. The nearby mountains are nice for hiking, although they do get crowded at times.

I also noticed that the area in general has sort of a liberal/hippie/marijuana culture going on. So you gotta be okay with that. In addition, there is somewhat of a western/cowboy vibe going on, relative to someone coming from the east coast. Many people are very outdoorsy and love nature.

There is lots of cookie cutter housing everywhere. There are some very nice malls, restaurants, etc.

I thought the driving was on the intense side, but coming from DC, you're probably used to that!

People are very friendly and open minded. The obesity rate is very low and most people are in decent shape. People are liberal and like to eat healthy.

It gets very cold in the winter, and in the summer it gets hot. Overnight, the temps drop up to 30 degrees. So even if it's 90 on a summer day, it will be about 60 over night.

I would say, overall, the metro area has a young/fun vibe. It's more homogenous and the population is about 65% white, whereas the DC area is about 48% white. So it's not as diverse as what you're used to, racially. But that's not necessarily a bad thing. Just an observation.

[jwiley]

Before I answer your question, you should answer a better question, have you visited Denver since you were young? Often we remember all the good and forget all the bad, and with the changes that have occurred in and around Colorado over the last 30 years I would venture to guess that it will not be like what you remember.

IF after visiting for a couple of weeks and spending some time looking around the actual city, you decide you want to make the move, than I would do it. Having $120,000 in the bank should be more than enough to move and get yourself set up, as well as buying you enough time to find a good job.

[Edison_Golden]

You shouldn't stay in a place you dislike - Life it far too short for that. But, you also don't want to destroy your life savings especially if you want to buy a place out here eventually. Instead of an all in or nothing approach I'd suggest networking like hell - the job boards don't have the roles companies are hiring for, at least the folks I know aren't.

I would work the network book like mad - use college alumni network groups, former employee groups, linkedin, make a target list of companies then work to get tied in with folks at them in CO. Then - buy a plane ticket, come to CO for a week or so and meet with folks - make 2 or 3 trips and build the base of folks to connect with. Then when you've got a connection make the leap. Good luck!

[ayoitzrimz]

Originally Posted by KatInTheHat

You could easily do it. But I'd recommend securing an apt. now when you have a job because they'll use your current salary to determine if you can afford it. It's easy to rent an apt. sight unseen if you can't make a scouting trip out before you plan to move.

I quit my well-paying job and moved here 1.5 years ago. It took me only 2 months to find another one at the salary I was making in Chicago. Other low-ball offers appeared sooner, but I held out for what I wanted, and it happened. With your savings, you could easily do it; just make job hunting your full-time job once you're here, and it should work out.

That is a very very good call. I moved here a week before starting my new job and simply used my old pay stubs to show income. You will likely need to validate income but I heard that with good credit and a lot of money in savings some landlords will be much more lenient (but property management companies may not be able to).

My wife did not have a job lined up, but was able to find something in her field within the first month of living here simply because she made job hunting her full time job and would spend close to 8 hours a day looking/applying/interviewing

[Co_guy_94]

JRodgers, I sent you a PM. We may be of assistance to one another.