Career Advice: Early Career City Move
I just recently started my career in CRE (1-2 years in) and although I like my job and company, I am looking to move. I have lived in the South Florida region my entire life, and have gotten tired of it and want to move to LA or NYC (preferably LA) to experience something different. What’s the best path to navigating my way to these places? Seems networking in my area is all catered to South Florida.
I have worked and lived in five different states now. I don't necessarily recommend that, but I do recommend not being afraid to make the big move if it's calling to you.
You have to give employers a reason to take a risk on you though and that's going to require some legwork and money on your end. Every single job you're applying to in LA is going to have USC undergrads who are a far easier higher, not to mention USC Master of Real Estate students and Stanford, UCLA Anderson, and USC Marshall MBAs. Unless you get outrageously lucky and you get hired by a national brand in some sort of annual associate hiring that lets you choose your location, you're going to have to put yourself out there.
I'm talking flying to LA once a month to network, maybe moving there without a job secured so you can have the zip code on your resume and pound the pavement in-person, or the most obvious: applying to grad school in the area so you can get a local internship and the degree on your resume.
I was hoping to avoid grad school but makes perfect sense. Unfortunate that the odds of getting hired directly are low. Does the prestige of the company you’re currently working at make a big difference, or does it mostly come down to people look to hire locally because they know who they hire will stay?
It might make a difference in which company you could be hired by in LA or NYC, but not why they should hire you over someone equally prestigious with local connections.
Similar to @CRE , I am on job number 4 in my 4th city (if you count the remote year during covid) since graduating in '18. It would help to know what part of the industry you are in. If your current firm looks nationwide, that is an easier sell to other firms in gateway markets as you're not pigeonholed only looking at doing development in South Florida. But regardless, you're at the perfect age to make a move like that. The deeper in your career, the more difficult it becomes, but once you go to NYC/LA you can pretty much go anywhere in the continental US and get hired.
does your last comment apply to SF and Chicago?
Yes, probably more for SF than Chicago, and not as impactful as LA/NYC.
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