Successful relocation strategies (employment, highest, interview, unemployed)

[SouthBound47]

Hi all, I'm currently trying to relocate literally anywhere in the South or lower Midwest, problem is I can get plenty of interviews here in Buffalo, but none where I want to live. I know most employers don't want to bother with bringing someone in… But I am seriously ready to move on my own dime, and interview on my own dime.

Any strategies to combat this?

By the way, the reason I am relocating is I'm graduating from college here and want to get out of this place… Buffalo isn't exactly the crown jewel of the US. My family has all moved out of here, and I want to live nearer to them, but in all honesty, my criteria is this: 1) Warm weather, 2) Medium city or small town, 3) Not Buffalo, 4) Not further west than the Mississippi.

[Charles]

Huntsville, Alabama: Tons of jobs, both contractor and government, low housing costs, excellent schools and no traffic. Very mild weather, today it was 86F.
Visit the Huntsville City-Data forum and scan the threads.
Some contractors provide relocation assistance (Boeing, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, Lockheed, etc.)

Huntsville as featured in major media:

S&P -HSV receives the highest possible rating for strength of the local economy with an "AAA". 1-09

Forbes: Leading cities for business 4-09, top 5 cities for defense jobs 4-09, Madison County, best place to live to weather the economy 11-08, one of the fastest growing metros in country 1-08

CNN Money-top 6 places to find a job 5-09

Wall Street Journal-Country's leading Metro for consumer lending growth 3-09

Yahoo- one of 10 great cities for salary growth 1-09

Business Week- top 50 best places to raise children in the US 11-08

Milken Institute- top 5 best performing cities in the country 10-08

US News-10 best cities for job seeking retirees 9-08

Smart Money-top 5 cities for job opportunities 9-08

Expansion Solutions-top 5 locations for aerospace companies 10-08

Kiplingers: Nations best city in 2009-July 2009

Fortune Small Business: Top mid-sized city to launch and grow a business 9-09

Forbes: Top 10 smartest cities in the WORLD 12-09, Top 5 best cities for recession recovery 7-09, Top 5 cities for defense jobs 4-09

Milken Institute: Top 10 best performing cities in the country 11-09

USNews: Top 10 places for tech jobs 9-09
City of Madison named the second best place to grow up in the US 8-09

Business Week: Second best recovering job market 11-09, 4th among America's 20 strongest building markets 9-09

Christian Science Monitor: Named of the nations next "boom towns"

Relocate America: Top 10 places to live-7-09

Inc.: Top 5 mid-sized cities for doing business-7-08

Wall Street Journal: Top 10 metro for business vitality 6-07

Computerworld: Top 5 cities for information technology 10-07

Staffing Industry Analysts, Inc: Top 5 engineering and design markets 7-08

Southern Business & Development: #1 mid-market in the south 8-08

Cybercities 2008: #3 America's leading technology cities

National Geographic Adventure: Top adventure town 9-07

Popular Science: One of America's leading greenest cities 3-08

Kiplingers Personal Finance: Top 5 cities for professional workers 6-07

Foreign Direct Investment: #1 small city of the future 4-07

I might as well pour it on:

• Huntsville was named one of the Top 5 Best Performing Cities in the Country – Milken Institute, September 2008
• Huntsville was named the Number One Mid-Market in the South – Southern Business Development Magazine, June 2006 and August 2008
• Huntsville was named one of America’s Top 5 Mid-Sized Cities for Doing Business – Inc.com, July 2008
• Huntsville is one of the Country’s Top 10 Technology Cities, Ranking 3rd in the Country for Concentration of Technology Workers – Cybercities 2008, June 2008
• Huntsville was named one of the Country’s Top 10 Places to Live – Relocate-America.com, May 2008
• Huntsville was named one of America’s Leading Greenest Cities – Poplar Science, March 2008
• Forbes Projects Huntsville to be one of the Fastest Growing Metros in the Country – Forbes Magazine, January 2008
• Huntsville was named one of America’s Top 5 Technology Cities – Computerworld, October 2007
• Huntsville was named one of the country’s Top Adventure Towns – National Geographic Adventure, September 2007
• Huntsville was named one of the country’s Top 10 Metros for Business Vitality – Wall Street Journal, June 2007
• Huntsville was named one of America’s Top 5 Cities for Professional Workers – Kiplinger’s Personal Finance, June 2007
• Huntsville is one of the country’s Top 10 Metros for Scientists and Engineers – Expansion Management Magazine, May 2007
• Huntsville was named one of Forbes’ Leading Cities for Business – Forbes Magazine, May 2005 & May 2007
• Huntsville was named the #1 Small City of the Future – Foreign Direct Investment Magazine, April 2007
• Huntsville was named one of America’s Top 100 Places to Live – Relocate-America.com, April 2007
• Huntsville was named one of the Country’s Top 10 Cities for Job Growth and Affordability – MSN/Sperling, March 2007
• Huntsville was named one of the Country’s Top 10 Job Growth Markets – Manpower, March 2007
• Huntsville was named one of America’s Hottest Cities – Expansion Management Magazine, February 2007
• Huntsville is one of the Country’s 15 Great Cities for Job Seekers – Careerbuilder.com, January 2007
• Huntsville was named one of the Country’s Top Entrepreneur Hot Spots – Entrepreneur Magazine, September 2006
• Huntsville was named one of the Country’s Top Metros for Business Opportunities – Expansion Management Magazine, July 2006
• Huntsville was named the Country’s Best Value for Salaries and Cost of Living – Salary.com, June 2006
• Huntsville is one of the Country’s Top 10 Communities for Best Overall Standard of Living – Expansion Management Magazine, May/June 2006
• Huntsville was named one of the Country’s Hottest Midsize Cities – Inc. Magazine, May 2006
• Huntsville was named the Top Mid-Sized” Military Community of Excellence” in the Country – Expansion Magazine, Special Issue, April 2006
• Financial Times’ publication recognizes Huntsville’s Biotech Brain Gain – Foreign Direct Investment, April 2006
• Huntsville was named one of the Top 10 Green Cities in the U.S., The Green Guide, April 2006
• Huntsville ranks as one of the country’s Best Locations for Scientists and Engineers, Expansion Management Magazine, April 2006
• Huntsville was ranked among the country’s Best Performing Cities – Milken Institute, February 2006
• Huntsville was named America’s 2nd Most Affordable City – Career World Magazine, November/December 2005
• Huntsville is one of the South’s Booming Manufacturing Centers – The Manufacturer Magazine, October 2005
• Huntsville has the highest concentration of Inc. 500 Fastest Growing Companies in the U.S. – Inc. Magazine, November 2005 and October 2004
• Huntsville was named the 2nd most Cost Effective Community in the United States – Foreign Direct Investment Magazine, June 2005
• Huntsville was named as one of the country’s leading Knowledge Worker Metros and one of America’s Super Cities of the Future – Expansion Management Magazine, May 2005
• Huntsville was listed as the South’s 2nd ranked Metro for Quality of Life – Expansion Management Magazine, March, 2005
• Huntsville ranks in Poplar Science’s list of America’s Top 50 Technology Hotspots – Poplar Science, March 2005
• The University of Alabama in Huntsville’s graduate engineering management program was ranked best in the U.S. by the American Society of Engineering Management, January 2005
• Huntsville ranks 5th in the country for software-related employment – Software Information Indu, October 2005
• Huntsville has the highest concentration of Inc. 500 Fastest Growing Companies in the U.S. – Inc. Magazine, November 2005 and October 2004
• Huntsville was named the 2nd most Cost Effective Community in the United States – Foreign Direct Investment Magazine, June 2005
• Huntsville was named as one of the country’s leading Knowledge Worker Metros and one of America’s Super Cities of the Future – Expansion Management Magazine, May 2005
• Huntsville was listed as the South’s 2nd ranked Metro for Quality of Life – Expansion Management Magazine, March, 2005
• Huntsville ranks in Poplar Science’s list of America’s Top 50 Technology Hotspots – Poplar Science, March 2005
• The University of Alabama in Huntsville’s graduate engineering management program was ranked best in the U.S. by the American Society of Engineering Management, January 2005
• Huntsville ranks 5th in the country for software-related employment – Software Information Industry Association, November 2004
• Huntsville leads the nation for the highest concentration of Inc. 500’s fastest growing private companies – Inc. Magazine, October 2004
• Huntsville was chosen as the top city in the nation for “Best Places to Live for Black Americans” Family Digest Magazine, March 2003
• Huntsville was ranked number 4 on the list of “America’s Best Places to Live and Work” Employment Review, June 2003
• NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, located in Huntsville, has been selected as the best place to work in federal government – Partnership for Public Service, November 2003

[JH6]

I'm in the same boat as you Southbound, also living in the suburbs of Buffalo, NY.

Message me if you have any good suggestions. I have been actively looking for positions for 18 months now, and have gotten maybe 3-4 phone screens, and the only jobs that called back were under 12 per hour.

I originally started looking in Arizona, then expanded it to Florida, Texas, Nevada, and even some positions in California.

I have a computer science degree and various certifications.

Although Huntsville, Alabama has a lot going for it. It is really a hard sell for someone coming from Upstate New York. Alabama and Mississippi seem to have a certain image that is hard to shake for me.

[malamute]

Originally Posted by SouthBound47

Hi all, I'm currently trying to relocate literally anywhere in the South or lower Midwest, problem is I can get plenty of interviews here in Buffalo, but none where I want to live. I know most employers don't want to bother with bringing someone in… But I am seriously ready to move on my own dime, and interview on my own dime.

Any strategies to combat this?

By the way, the reason I am relocating is I'm graduating from college here and want to get out of this place… Buffalo isn't exactly the crown jewel of the US. My family has all moved out of here, and I want to live nearer to them, but in all honesty, my criteria is this: 1) Warm weather, 2) Medium city or small town, 3) Not Buffalo, 4) Not further west than the Mississippi.

Right out of college is the perfect time to do this. People have always done just that -- graduate, pack up, and move. You don't have too much stuff yet, no kids to disrupt from their own schools and friends, no spouse working a job they like. Now's the best time to relocate.

Go where your heart leads you, if you have to work another kind of job for a few months while you get situated, then you do that. It'll be easier to do a job search already located where you want to be.

[Southlander]

Originally Posted by JustinH

Although Huntsville, Alabama has a lot going for it. It is really a hard sell for someone coming from Upstate New York. Alabama and Mississippi seem to have a certain image that is hard to shake for me.

Maybe you could visit and shake off some of those stereotypes.
If you did get a job in Alabama or Mississippi, the experience would parlay into a job in a location more to your liking.

[Zippy7fo]

Relocation advice

-get a local phone number..either by google voice, skype, vonage, pre pay cell phone..

-get a zip code in that area...p.o. box would be the best


-employers databases screen out candidates by zip code and area code along with job keywords...


-tell employer if you do get contacted that your relocating at your own expense...this is the real issue...companies do not want to pay for relocation right now due to high unemployment...ton of local talent to pick from....

-make sure you let them know you are moving now and you can interview within 48 hours.......

[bnwebm]

I'm with you there too. I'm in Kenmore, unemployed and haven't gotten a single call for work in this area, with a masters degree. I did get one call from a place in WA state, but the job was part time, and temporary. I'd much rather go south as well, looking at FL. This area absolutely sucks for income. Good luck.

Oh, and if a company wants you bad enough, they will do a phone interview. I've had those over the years. Have you checked out Austin, TX?

[annken]

Originally Posted by SouthBound47

Hi all, I'm currently trying to relocate literally anywhere in the South or lower Midwest, problem is I can get plenty of interviews here in Buffalo, but none where I want to live. I know most employers don't want to bother with bringing someone in… But I am seriously ready to move on my own dime, and interview on my own dime.

Any strategies to combat this?

By the way, the reason I am relocating is I'm graduating from college here and want to get out of this place… Buffalo isn't exactly the crown jewel of the US. My family has all moved out of here, and I want to live nearer to them, but in all honesty, my criteria is this: 1) Warm weather, 2) Medium city or small town, 3) Not Buffalo, 4) Not further west than the Mississippi.

We used to live in Rochester but sold our home and moved to TX last summer after a double job loss. We still have two in college and they are headed this way after graduation. I encourage you to visit before any moves though. I have sent you a DM.

[SouthBound47]

Originally Posted by bnwebm

I'm with you there too. I'm in Kenmore, unemployed and haven't gotten a single call for work in this area, with a masters degree. I did get one call from a place in WA state, but the job was part time, and temporary. I'd much rather go south as well, looking at FL. This area absolutely sucks for income. Good luck.

Oh, and if a company wants you bad enough, they will do a phone interview. I've had those over the years. Have you checked out Austin, TX?

Austin is a little far, but I'm looking further and further. I honestly wanted to go to Va. Beach… But who knows at this point. If they pay me, I'll go so long as I don't loath the place. Hard to imagine a place being much worse than Buffalo.

And I got your DM annken, thank you.

[JH6]

Annken, could you resend me the direct message?

The spam blocker is now blocking people from sending URL links in private messages.

I suppose you need to spell it out www dot whatever dot com..