Do you think it hurts your application if you’re in a different state than a job you’re applying for? I live and work in a location that is not a finance town, and I want to transition to a financial hub.
I would think yes, but I am not a recruiter/hr person.
I would say no… as long as you can explain yourself when they ask about it (and they will). I.E. You don’t want to come off as someone carpet bombing the country by sending resumes to Boston, NY, DC, SanFran, Chicago and hopeing something sticks. That poses the risk that you might hate your new city and up and quit when you realize NYC slowly murders your soul and no amount of scotch can dull the pain even though you go from six to midnight everytime to look at your ATM balance. (This is not me, but I’ve seen this happen to people, they miss family and friends and quit overnight)
Have something like “Oh, all my friends moved out to (CITY) and I planned to relocate as soon as I got the opportunity”, or “It’s always been my dream to live there, that was my goal all along and I am focusing on only (CITY) in my search, already have brokers looking for apartment… yada yada” etc.
One of our last hires lived in SanFran. Interview process was entirely over skype.
It helps to most a New York address since there are so many available applicants here. But if you don’t live in NYC, what can you do? Maybe put down a relative’s address if you have the opportunity to stay there, or explain why you plan to move to NYC. This won’t be a big deal either way as long as you can credibly convince them that you have plans to move…oh, and that you are the most qualified candidate for the job.
It doesn’t matter until and unless your address proof is right don’t try to make it according to their specification because later you need to show them your original address if it has an flaws then later on may need to face the consequences.