Is a Job Move Worth It? How to Weigh Your Options
Two years ago, then 28-year-old Valerie French experienced a culture clash when she moved from southern California to Washington, D.C., to work at a major art museum. “I loved my job, but I just hated living there,” she says. She found the nation’s capital too conservative, “the kind of place where if you wear Banana Republic you’re cutting edge.”
So, after just a year, Ms. French started looking for a new job that would have her move again. “Your environment is so important,” she says from New York, where she is now happily settled.
Moving for a job, especially when you’re just starting out, can be the springboard that launches your career. But weigh your options carefully. Where you move is just as important for your happiness as the job you move for, many career managers and recruitment professionals say.
Occupational Horizons
Moving to a new locale is risky because there are so many unknowns. Add in a new job and you set yourself up for a pretty stressful time. So make sure that the job on the other end is worth it.
Think about what your career prospects will be five years from now if you take (or don’t take) the position. A new job, especially if it requires relocation, “should mean greater opportunity coming in the door and greater opportunity looking at that five-year horizon,” says Brian Sullivan, head of Christian & Timbers, an executive search firm based in New York.
Obviously, the last thing you want is to move and then be let go. Ask what happened to the person who formerly filled the slot. High turnover may be a red flag. Is your position new or part of a new program? If so, you may want to think extra hard, because the company could change course and eliminate the post, says Cathy Goodwin, a career consultant in Seattle.
Figuring Your Finances
“It’s not all about salary,” says Anne Moore, a career specialist at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. Consider the cost of living in a different locale as well.
Say you live in New York and make $40,000 a year. If you move to Atlanta, which has a 44.8% lower cost of living, according to Salary.com, you could earn just $22,090 a year and still maintain your current standard of living. Match your current pay in Atlanta, and you’d feel like you have lots more money to save or spend.
To check out different cities at Salary.com, scroll down to “Salary Data” and click on “Cost-of-Living Wizard.”
The financial equation is far more complicated if you are moving with a spouse or other partner who has to leave a current job and take a chance on finding a new position in your destination city.
Also weigh the costs of making the move and ask how much of that your new employer will pay. More than 90% of U.S. companies will cover some if not all of a person’s relocation expenses, which may include house-hunting trips, temporary housing and closing costs on a new home, according to Worldwide ERC, a professional relocation association. Unreimbursed moving expenses may be tax-deductible. Check out www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc455.html online.
Location, Location…
Saying yes to a job in a small town when you live in a big city — or vice versa — involves big changes and may require sacrifices. Weigh factors such as cultural offerings, sports and recreation opportunities, traffic and the pace of life. Even “the weather can really influence people’s happiness,” says Ms. Moore of Johns Hopkins. The question: Can you live with the differences?
Ms. Goodwin recommends making two trips to get a feel for a new place. Pay attention to local customs and “try to connect with real people” while visiting, she says.
“It is very easy to get seduced by the idea of something new,” notes Mr. Sullivan. But particularly if you are moving away from your home city, consider how you’ll fare away from family, friends and the social supports that you’ve relied upon in the past.
Email your comments to cjeditor@dowjones.com.