How to relocate to Washington with no job lined up (Seattle: headhunter, house prices)

[newintown89]

For those who ended up moving from another state to Washington, did you have a job a job to, or did you move there and find a job once there?

I really want to live there, but when I moved from Texas to Virginia I had to stay with a friend for a while as I was applying to jobs in Virginia, but as I lived in Texas, companies saw where I lived and knew I didn’t live in the area, and never called me.

[thatguy950]

What industry and what is your education/experience? Also where in WA? Seattle for example is ferociously competitive

[newintown89]

I have a bachelors degree in business administration, but my current job is an office manager for a software company, so I guess you could say I’m in the tech field, although the admin side.

[Ruth4Truth]

With a BA in Biz admin, you should do ok, OP. Have you decided yet, on where in WA you want to move? Have you checked online job listings for different areas, to see if your general line of work is in demand? We can't really replace good old-fashioned research.

But re: your general "how to relocate" question, the answer would be: have about 6 months'-worth of living expenses saved up, then see if you can sign on with a headhunter in your chosen locale.Same as moving to most other places. IIRC, you're not interested in Seattle. So for your job research, you might try Vancouver, Olympia, and a few places east of the mountains, if you don't mind dry environments, and high summer heat. Maybe the Kitsap Peninsula, too: Silverdate & Bangor area.

[thatguy950]

Ok, whereabouts are you looking in WA? May be tough in Seattle but Eastern WA seems to be doing well lately with very low COL

[newintown89]

I don’t know the area and would love suggestions. Somewhere suburban with jobs, lots to do, younger people in their 20’s, and not insane house prices. I’m near DC and live in the third most expensive county in the USA, so unless I make a 100k a year, I won’t be owning a home.

There are houses I’ve seen in Washington state for 200k that are beautiful, and you’d get the same here for like 700k, and they might not even be as spacious. It’s insane.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by newintown89

I don’t know the area and would love suggestions. Somewhere suburban with jobs, lots to do, younger people in their 20’s, and not insane house prices. I’m near DC and live in th third most expensive county in the USA, so unless I make a 100k a year, I won’t be owning a home.

Yeah, y'know, I think San Francisco, King Co. (Seattle) and the Silicon Valley counties have you beat. But, whatever. We get your point.

Olympia would definitely have young people in their 20's. Not sure what your definition of "lots to do" is. Outdoor activities? Museums/galleries/bookstores/gyms/culture?

[thatguy950]

Originally Posted by newintown89

I don’t know the area and would love suggestions. Somewhere suburban with jobs, lots to do, younger people in their 20’s, and not insane house prices. I’m near DC and live in th third most expensive county in the USA, so unless I make a 100k a year, I won’t be owning a home.

Same story in Seattle, except it does tick your boxes everywhere else. I’d give Bothell or Mill Creek a look, relatively close but significantly cheaper than Seattle and plenty to donin their own right. Still, commuting downtown at rush hour (like DC it’s more rush day than hour) can be brutal though, 1.5-2hrs is not uncommon from MC if leaving after 6am, especially on a rainy day. Still, google the town center, nice little pocket of suburbia and not ‘that’ far from city center

[newintown89]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

Yeah, y'know, I think San Francisco, King Co. (Seattle) and the Silicon Valley counties have you beat. But, whatever. We get your point.

Olympia would definitely have young people in their 20's. Not sure what your definition of "lots to do" is. Outdoor activities? Museums/galleries/bookstores/gyms/culture?

Yes. All of that and shopping, restaurants, coffee shops, supermarkets. Basically not in the middle of nowhere. I don’t like living in cities either, and much prefer the quieter life to live at least.

[newintown89]

That’s brutal. I don’t commute to DC and never want to again after commuting to Houston in Texas each day for an hour and a half each way.

The most i’d like to commute with traffic is 30 mins. I commute 15 now and it’s perfect, so I’m guessing areas with offices within that distance.