I'm moving cross-country. Should I look for a remote job or office job?

Question

I'm a web developer with about 5 years of experience. My wife and I would like to move from rural Western Washington (I work for local government) to Eastern Tennessee to be closer to my wife's family. I have a mild preference for office or hybrid jobs, but the prospect of looking for jobs in Knoxville or Chattanooga while living hundreds of miles away seems daunting, especially considering that I'm new to job searching (my current job was a referral). I also have no idea how bad the job market is for someone with my level of experience.Would it be smarter to look for a remote job instead to ease the job search and relocating process? Or should I look for office jobs in Tennessee where the pool of candidates is much smaller than full remote?I know I'm probably overthinking this, but any advice is greatly appreciated. Have a wonderful weekend!

bell-cot · Accepted Answer

Given your background, I'd at least check with a bunch of the local governments in Eastern TN, to get some sense of the market for similar jobs there.

gregjor · Answer

You should do both. With employers tightening up hiring and hundreds of thousands of tech people laid off, you need both focus and flexibility.
Presumably you can’t switch to remote at your current job.
Referrals and inside tracks (usually through recruiters) work better than applying to hundreds of jobs along with everyone else. Start with your professional network and contacts.