Relocation Advice-Local Hire vs Out of state hire (Philadelphia: insurance, how much)

[Comute18]

I am interested in moving to Philly. Several employers pass up on your resume when they see an out of state address even though you are willing to relocate yourself or you are only an hour or two away. More interested in local candidates.

Can I hear from anyone who has relocated to a city or Philly from some place else. How did you get the job? Did you use a local address? Did you know someone at the job? Did you get a relo package? Did you move yourself? Any tips on trying to find a job in another city

Thanks

[1ondoner]

You're in a catch 22 situation because a local hire is more available for the job than an out of state hire. I've relocated 3 times to take up a new job, including moving from the UK to the US. In all instances the issue of relocation was discussed in the screening interview and they picked up the relo tab. However, in my type of work, this is not unusual but I want to think I've been lucky.

I'd like to think that the wider geographical footing a company has, they more they are open to relocating new hires. Smaller companies tend to focus more on local hires.

[Flyers Girl]

You may get more responses in the Work and Employment forum. I believe this has been discussed there before.

[Ohiogirl81]

I successfully relocated from Cincinnati, and according to my boss: "I didn't care if you were from out of town; I was willing to wait because your skills were exactly what we needed."

I didn't use a local address, but did have a local phone number. The start date was part of the negotiation process.

[FamousBlueRaincoat]

It depends what your skill-set is, how dependent you are on a specific career/industry, how dependent you are on specific pay rate, and how well you can save.

My wife and I have always been great savers and never made a great deal of money and are not dependent on one specific career path.

We moved to Philadelphia from Minneapolis with about one years living expenses saved up. We were about a year or two out of college. It was also during the early days of the great recession. Wound up being a little rough for a while as the jobs we got there did not pay as much as in Minneapolis, yet the COL was higher. We were alright but did not get to save like we used to. Over the course of time we did better. But we had to build ourselves back up again.

If you want to move without a job first, you just have to be honest with yourself. Know how much money you need, know you can stick to a budget, know that it might take a while to find a job and it might not be a great job. If you get to the point where you just need a job, any job, that's the one you'll take.

Philadelphia is a big city with plenty of people. There could be hundreds of people applying to jobs. If you move here without a job, plan on applying to jobs like it's your full-time job. I know plenty of really smart people with great educations who were never able to break in to the "professional" fields after graduating with various degrees....be ready to do actual, dirty, annoying, unappealing work upon arrival.

You're also not coming from terribly far away it looks like. Driving distance anyway. Maybe you want to take a look at improving your resume and cover letter? A good resume and cover letter can do wonders. With a bad hiring manager, it can even get you an offer for a job you are woefully unqualified for.

I'd really like to stress that it's something that only makes sense if you plan it out well and are really honest with yourself about what kind of work you are willing to do if you have to and how much time your savings can buy you. Personally I wouldn't move without a years living expenses lined up (including rent, medical insurance, groceries....etc) not that it would take to a year to find a job, but that gives you some wiggle room in case of something unexpected.

We also recently left Philadelphia without work lined up. But we moved to a state with a reasonable cost of living and extremely low unemployment. Found work practically right away, making the same money as in Philadelphia at a much lower cost of living.

[PHL10]

If you're not looking for a relocation package, I would get a local address so as to not have your resume "screened out" since you are out of town. But like some mentioned, if you are in a high demand industry, it shouldn't matter.

[Comute18]

Thank you everyone for the great feedback.

[JacksonPanther]

My address is not on my resume. Only my phone and email.