Relocating to Denver/CS w/ family and in search of a new IT career.. Better Life.. (find a job, income)

[80skeys]

Originally Posted by OneMoreMove

Well, OK I think your comments are fair and I agree with you. Perhaps we are both right:

1) The market is soft everywhere, with salaries down across the board!
2) It's stronger in some areas, weaker in others.
3) Considering the nationwide market situation for IT work, Denver isn't doing badly.

Is this sufficient to encourage people to move to Denver and look for work? I personally don't think so.

It seems that your previous posts have been overly optimistic and given a false impression to would-be job applicants. I would rather balance this with realism.

[OneMoreMove]

I think it's exceedingly clear that I am more optimistic while you are more pessimistic.

I find it a bit abrasive for you to label my posts as 'overly optimistic' while yours simply 'realism'. Are your anecdotal findings more 'real' than mine? Unless you have hard data and can extrapolate that data to the general population, you are simply guessing based on your observation like everyone else. With that, consider that you seem to be the only one with your level of 'realism' - others are more optimistic to varying degrees.

People are giving their opinions, and they are nothing more than that at this point.

Everyone needs to gauge the market and their likelihood of finding a job on their own. The threshold at which someone should decide that they should move to Denver and hope to find a job is up to them. I don't know anyone who isn't finding work in Denver, and I know a handful of people who have successfully landed jobs. That is my observation.

[HarborEastGuy]

Given how this thread has progressed, I am inclined to believe that:

1. Jobs are available here in Denver whereas in many US cities employers are not hiring at all.
2. Jobs now pay a lot less than in 2006/2007. Many out-of-work are seeing 40% paycuts from 2007 wages.
3. If you have a job at 2006/2007 wages, stay there and count your blessings.
4. The job market is poor everywhere but Denver seems to be doing better than most US cities.

Good Luck to all...

[HarborEastGuy]

Also...

I *DO NOT* recommend that anyone move anywhere to "look for work".

Moving is a huge expense and it is not wise to take on more expenses if you are already
out of work. Personally, I would never entertain moving unless I had a guaranteed job
waiting for me. This is not the time to take risks with your money.

[bbandy]

Hi Steve,
Very exciting that you're planning a move to the Denver area. I came here 34 years ago and have not looked back!

One good resource for IT jobs is the Rocky Mountain Internet Users Group. They have a very active jobs board for anything IT related. Go to Rocky Mountain Internet User Group and you can sign up for the email digests of all the postings.

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[OneMoreMove]

Originally Posted by Tom63376

Also...

I *DO NOT* recommend that anyone move anywhere to "look for work".

Moving is a huge expense and it is not wise to take on more expenses if you are already
out of work. Personally, I would never entertain moving unless I had a guaranteed job
waiting for me. This is not the time to take risks with your money.

Well, it depends on how you phrase it. If you are 'moving to Denver to look for work' than that sounds pretty silly. If you 'are dying to move to Denver and are willing to risk having to find a job when you get here' that's more sensible.

[HarborEastGuy]

I see your point...

But I still think that the economy is bad enough that people should not take risks.
Wait for that job, interview, and get it before you move anywhere.

If you move without a job, then run out of money while looking for one, you will be
in far worse shape.

[bogotrep]

Is this sufficient to encourage people to move to Denver and look for work? I personally don't think so.

I agree.

1. Jobs are available here in Denver whereas in many US cities employers are not hiring at all.

I disagree.

[vegaspilgrim]

Originally Posted by Tom63376

Also...

I *DO NOT* recommend that anyone move anywhere to "look for work".

Moving is a huge expense and it is not wise to take on more expenses if you are already
out of work. Personally, I would never entertain moving unless I had a guaranteed job
waiting for me. This is not the time to take risks with your money.

No, you can't say that with 100% certainty. What if you're already unemployed, and you live in a place like Detroit or Las Vegas (14.2% unemployment), or a small city with no economy period? Not everybody owns a house to sell or has kids to put through school. In that case moving somewhere to look for work could be a smart thing, and could be less expensive than the opportunity cost of not moving. Although Denver is not exactly the top of the list of places to find jobs.

Very few people are lucky enough to be able to get a job offer remotely while being out of state. Most of the time, your application gets tossed straight in the garbage can if you don't have a local address. Flying out for interviews on your own dime, if it's more than once or twice a month, can end up being more expensive than just moving and renting a room on a month-to-month basis. Just something to think about.

[HarborEastGuy]

Everytime I changed jobs, it was in a different state and the company flew me out for
the interview. That's how I have alrways done it so I can't imagine sucking up all those
costs to get a job. I'd rather get the job then move. Call me cautious... Maybe I was
lucky...