moving without a job

[ciscofella]

I currently have 7 years experience in the networking field as a network engineer. I have for the past couple years been really wanting to get out of the state where I live and work (NJ) and move to the west coast somewhere. I have been thinking of AZ, CA, NM and TX primarily and I am planning a trip to CA in the fall to possibly search for opportunities. My question is that since I am at a VERY stable operation making a decent wage am I a fool to take such a risk? I do have a wife and child that come into this to equation to. They are up for it but I’m not sure they know or I know what to expect. So any thoughts or opinions are greatly appreciated.

 

[MattWray]

From what I've read I'd stay where I was at unless you have a job lined up. And definitely not CA, they are saturated with unemployed IT pros. Though I am in Texas and I have seen some work here, Houston, and in Dallas.
Right now, a stable job is golden.... My .02....

 

[sleipnir214]

It never hurts to look.

And if you were single and felt this way, I'd say "More power to you." However, if you have people depending on you for the necessities of life, it is foolhardy in the extreme to move anywhere without having a job already there.

Want the best answers? Ask the best questions:

http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

TANSTAAFL!!

 

[FSM]

Im with Sleipnir214 If you were alone, well that will be a totally different story, I am in a similar situation (but single) and still having trouble deciding. It’s very tough to relocate and don’t have a job, but, if you’re miserable where you are………well…. You should give it a go BUT make a plan and start from there.

FSM

 

[ciscofella]

Thanks for the replies, I am still going to consider the move but will definitely try and map this out a little more thouroughly. It can be tough I like my job but I'm ready for a major geographic change. Well thanks for the input

 

[lespaul]

At least check the job sites (monster, flipdog, dice, etc.) for opportunities in the Southwest. I check them regularly, but I look at programming positions, not networking. I'm in Albuquerque, NM and love the southwest, remember though that the pay (and cost of living) is much lower than back east or in California in most areas of the SW.

Leslie

 

[flapeyre]

If you are considering California, remember that housing costs are astronomical, and getting even more expensive. I wouldn't even dream of such a move unless I were able to afford decent housing on what I am making now. The house we live in (Louisiana) was appraised at $117K a few months ago (we refinanced), and the same small, 2 bedroom house in CA would easily go for half a million - or more. Cost of living on other things (fuel, etc.), can also be higher.

There are lots of things to consider - your salary vs. cost of living is only one. Climate is another (I think Lasik is so popular down here just because people are getting tired of their glasses fogging up whenever they step outside in the summertime).


"When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the Earth with your eyes turned skyward, for here you have been, and there you will always long to return."

--Leonardo da Vinci

 

[chiph]

flapeyre has a good point. For fun one day, a coworker and I tried to find the cheapest house we could in the Silicon Valley area via Realtor.com. It turned out to be a 40 year old, 1200sf, 3 bedroom, 1 bath, no garage or carport, minimal yard with a dangerous looking chain-link fence around it, and it was painted a shade of blue that only a color-blind person could love.

All for the low-low price of $325,000!

Chip H.


If you want to get the best response to a question, please check out FAQ222-2244 first

 

[lespaul]

And for comparison's sake:

In October 1999 I purchased a 2100 sqft, 4 bedroom, 2 bath w/ 2 car garage for $125,000. It even has an atrium w/ sky lights and is completely xeriscaped (for those of you who live where water is plentiful, xeriscaping is landscaping with low water use plants). And property taxes are fairly low here too!

Not that I'm trying to convince you to choose NM, but it really is a great place to live, low humidity, not as hot as AZ, no earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, heavy snows, etc. Plus lots of outdoor activities: skiing (in the northern part of the state where it DOES snow), hiking, rock climbing, camping. (Do I sound like a tourism ad or what!!!?)

Leslie

 

[SF0751]

Check out Texas - especially the areas around Austin and San Antonio. I don't care for Houston or Dallas - too much traffic for me. Good prices for homes, and no state income tax!

Susan
[sup]Don't part with your illusions. When they are gone you may still exist, but you have ceased to live. - Mark Twain[/sup]

 

[Rougy]

Regarding New Mexico:

Jobs are tough, yes, but there aren't many tech people out here. Petroleum companies, schools, colleges, milk & cheese processing plants (a big one is going up in Clovis)...they need people like you.

Albuquerque is a quirky little place. It's got potential.

If you could get your foot in the door in Sante Fe, and make a real living, you'll think you died and went to heaven.

My take is that there just aren't enough people here who know what you know. Wages might not be high, but housing here is cheaper, so it more or less balances...except in Sante Fe, where housing is ridiculous.

-----
The death of dogma is the birth of reason.

 

[jdl508]

After hearining all of these posts I think I should change my flight to go to New Mexico instead of CA. Is the heat really unbearable there? I spent a year in San Antonio Tx and thought that was nice. Thanks for all the posts

 

[lespaul]

No the heat is not "unbearable". Sometimes it gets hot, but since it's so dry you really don't get the feeling that it's super hot, you don't perspire like you do in humid areas either. If nothing else, move into some shade and the temp drops considerably!

If you make it out here feel free to email me if you have any questions.

Leslie

landrews@metrocourt.state.nm.us

 

[chiph]

I did some work in Farmington NM at my last job (installing some software for the hospital in Shiprock), and I thought it was a nice area. It was warm (mid 90's) but coming from the humid South, I didn't think it was that bad. Just needed a hat to wear and I would have been fine.

Only thing that I, as an Easterner, found disturbing was that it was several hundred miles to the next town of any size. I suspect that if you needed something that wasn't available locally (and they had everything a geek like me might have wanted in town), you'd be mail-ordering it.

No problems getting fresh fruits & veggies in the local supermarket. And excellent steaks in the restaurants!

And, as a plug for my local area: Raleigh-Durham has been rated in the top-10 places to live in the USA for a 2nd time by a national magazine. Jobs are OK here, but not great. The telecommunications sector was worst hit (Northern Telecom, Alcatel, etc). But Software seems to be on a gradual recovery. Cost of living is pretty low too ($200,000 for a house like LesPaul described).

Chip H.


If you want to get the best response to a question, please check out FAQ222-2244 first

 

[cyclegeek]

It never hurts to look around. As an example, I know of an HR person who goes thru a full-on job search every 18 months both for other side of the coin practice and to see if something better is out there.

 

[skotman]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who has this delima. I'm currently planning on going back to school as I spent 3 years after dropping out of college to do the professional thing and now realise I need a diploma. The only issue is where I want to school and where I live are two different states. I plan to move in with my fiance (another reason to move) and get a part time job to help pay for things but to leave a job where I work for a friend in the oil field industry to go work back in the tech industry is definitl a hard thing to do.

Scott Heath

http://www.scottspad.com

AIM: orange7288

 

[jimoo]

If you're moving to another area and you don't have a job, don't forget to check out temporary employment agencies and job recruiters. They are all over. Typically, they don't pay much but the can generate some income (better than none) and they often point you to great leads.

Just stay away from anyone that wants you to pay a fee.

Jim Osieczonek
Delta Business Group, LLC

http://www.deltabg.com

 

[chucknln]

First, I would suggest that continuing education requirements, credit for experience with peer review, with some sort of board certification might work for programmers working on mission critical software.

With regard to the CA job market, things are very bad with many good people out of work for over one year. Many programmers are leaving the field. The only coming (not here yet) technology is solar power and hydrogen fuel cells. Even Phd's in biotech are having major problems finding jobs.

 

[ghostymosty]

You are contemplating what I just did. I moved from Louisiana back to Southern California after being away for 12 years. Haven't found a job since July this year and it doesn't look good. I am in the position of staying with family members so time is on my side but someone with their own family and no support would find the situation critical out here. Best I could find would be installing Satellites or working for the cable company instead of running network wire installations and light configurations.

David in Riverside, CA
datacablefixer@aol.com

 

[skotman]

update:
Just got accepted into school in Maryland, will be leaving New Orleans on the 28th of Dec. I wont be working so I can concentrate on school but it's stilla big step. I'll try to keep everyone posted.

on another note...I went to my pastor about this decision and aparently he went to a prayer meeting last night at my boss' house where he prayed for me...so much for keeping THIS under wraps untill Dec1.

Scott Heath

http://www.scottspad.com

AIM: orange7288