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Best Cities for Job Hunt

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If you are open to relocation for the right job, and Glassdoor research found that 28.5% of job applications are outside of the applicant’s current metro area, then there are many, many lists of best cities to inform and improve your search.

Glassdoor’s 5 Cities Attracting the Most Candidates from Outside the Area

San Francisco at number one and San Jose at number 3 lead this list driven by the technology boom and being the epicenter of social media companies. New York City at number two and Los Angeles at number 4 are ranked high partially driven by the sheer size of these cities but being the center of the financial services and entertainment industries doesn’t hurt. At number five, Washington, DC is home to a third of the country’s digital workforce primarily driven by the increasing demand for cybersecurity and DC’s unique combination of policy, business and national security.

Forbes 10 Best Cities for Jobs

Arizona has three in this top ten list: Scottsdale (#1), Chandler (#7) and Tempe (#9). Arizona’s wage growth was up 7.4% over the past four quarters representing one of the fastest paces in the nation. Arizona, Orlando FL (#3), Rancho Cucamonga, CA and Salt Lake City, UT (#8) have surging population growth. As the U.S. population ages people move to retiree havens like these. Corresponding services to support this population growth lead to more open positions. Rounding out this list are Plano, TX (#2), Sioux Falls, SD (#4), San Francisco (#5) and Raleigh, NC (#10).

Fortune’s Best Cities to Find a Job You’ll Actually Enjoy

This list is dramatically different than the first two because it is not just based on how strong the job market is. Fortune has included the cost of living and job satisfaction as part of their criteria to make this list. As a result mid-size cities with lower cost of living and decidely lower cost of housing come out on top. Pittsburgh, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Raleigh-Durham, St. Louis and Memphis are the top six. Then a triumvirate of Ohio cities at 7, 8 and 9: Columbus, Cincinnati and Cleveland. Louisville is number 10 but most surprisingly Detroit comes in at number 12 for the come-back city of the year.

Glassdoor’s 5 Cities Workers are Looking to Leave

Where are all of these mobile workers coming from? Interestingly California leads all states with three cities in this list: San Jose, Riverside and Sacramento. Because San Jose was also on the most desirable target city list, they have to be on this list just due to fluidity of their workforce. Sacramento and Riverside are experiencing a boom in construction and other blue collar openings but often these positions are temporary and reinforce turnover. Baltimore’s spate of bad press and depressed economy is driving their population to look elsewhere.

Consider making a move to improve your career, your standard of living or just to be a part of the migration and opportunity occurring across this great country.  Contact the recruiters at Smith Hanley Associates to start your job search today!

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