Does not having a local address mean I'm not a viable job candidate?

January 25, 2012 7:39 PM

I recently moved from LA to DC two years ago. It is not working out, and I want to move back home. I started sending my resume to several different companies in CA about 3 weeks ago, using my DC address - unfortunately, I have yet to hear from anyone. Should I re-send my resume, using my parents' local address, or will this further irritate HR managers?

I have excellent references from my current employer - but at least one supervisor with whom I'm very close told me no one has contacted him. I've applied to over a dozen places, still nothing. Is my out-of-state address landing my resume in the trash?

posted by anonymous to Work & Money (11 answers total)

Use your LA address but your current cell phone number. That is not at all weird. I know a lot of people who keep their old numbers with old area codes when they move to a new place. Then when they ask, just say that you're still in DC but transitioning back to Los Angeles.
posted by elizeh at 7:56 PM on January 25, 2012

Yea, I'd use the local address. But assume then that you would be expected to move yourself back to CA. I've limited myself to local candidates at times because we couldn't afford the extra $10~15k relocation expense.
posted by Long Way To Go at 7:59 PM on January 25, 2012

Get a Google Voice number with a CA area code, use your parents' address. Your work experience will show you're currently in DC, and they'll ask, and you just say you're there for the moment and coming back as soon as you find a job.

I hired someone a few months ago in basically that situation, though he'd been in the Northeast for some years. But he had work experience and school in CA so it was no great stretch for me to get that he was looking to move back. I had to wait a month for him to wrap up and move, but it was totally worth it and I was pretty confident - unlike another department in my company who hired TWO no-shows and then a third who was from the area but working in another state and showed up on time his first day - he'd show up because all signs pointed to yes.
posted by Lyn Never at 8:10 PM on January 25, 2012

I second all the above. And...don't get discouraged since applying to "over a dozen" is relatively minor nowadays. In my experience your references won't be contacted by a potential employer until you've heard from that employer first.
posted by Hermanos at 12:43 AM on January 26, 2012

Maybe it needs to be pointed out that simply sending resumes and expecting a response is not the most effective strategy for looking for a new job.
posted by megatherium at 5:24 AM on January 26, 2012

You've sent over a dozen resumes? When you've sent over 100 let us know. Sending out a dozen resumes doesn't even count as a serious job search, unless you are in some super specialized field with very limited opportunities.

Also, what do you do? If you are an engineer or software developer you should be able to stir up some interest from afar. If you are bartender, nobody is going to make an effort to interview you when you are 3000 miles away. You may need to pack up and move back in with mom and dad while you find a job in LA.
posted by COD at 5:40 AM on January 26, 2012

You need further communication with the companies that are receiving your resumes. A cover letter explaining that you are originially from LA and are looking to move back there is the very least you can do. The other suggestions, Google number, using an LA address with your current cell phone number, are all good ones.

I would follow up with email or phone call to the specific department or person that reviews resumes at the companies you've already sent your resume to. Give them a brief (I'm talking 3 to 5 minutes max, unless they want to chat more) explanation over the phone about your situation.

There are many people who do an email blast with their resume, for any job any where - and those go straight into the trash. Recruiting people have to look at hundreds of resumes everyday - don't expect them to be able to magically divine what you're trying to do.
posted by lootie777 at 6:20 AM on January 26, 2012 [1 favorite]

Your phone number won't matter, since most people move with their cell phone; your address might/might not matter - but as mentioned, you should be stating explicitly that you desire to return to the area in which you seek employment, else how would anyone know?

But most likely, you simply aren't generating interest, and until you follow up, you won't know whether it's your address or your credentials (or timing) that aren't getting you responses.
posted by sm1tten at 7:37 AM on January 26, 2012

Take your address off of your resume. Talk about location after you have an interview.
posted by orangejenny at 3:43 PM on January 26, 2012

Take your address off of your resume. Talk about location after you have an interview.

I wouldn't do this. I bin resumes without addresses because I don't want to have to deal with whatever weird issue as caused it to be left out. I don't need a street address but city & state is important. The cost of relocating a candidate factors in my decision to interview or not.
posted by Long Way To Go at 3:59 PM on January 26, 2012

Put the city & state that you are moving back to, leave the phone as is, and don't bother with a street address. More importantly, keep applying. Between last week and the first week in October, I applied to 200+ jobs, easy, and all of them were within 2 hours of my town. I had very few companies contact me with any interest, but I did interview at about 10 places.

None of them, including the place that just hired me last week, called any of my references. In general, companies call references either right before they offer you a job, or if they offer you a job conditionally, right after they offer you the job - at least that is my experience!

So keep applying, don't sweat the address or lack of reference calls, but expect to move without a job lined up unless you are in a niche industry with few applicants.

Good luck!
posted by firei at 7:11 PM on January 26, 2012