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Volume
1 - Issue 18
October, 2007
Nationally recognized
recruiter, Dan Simmons and the Continental Search team bring you
this issue of Simmons Says.
With more than
15 years experience in the recruiting industry, Dan combines his
expertise and experience to help clients attract and retain top
talent.services provided
- contingent search
-
retained search
- contract staffing
- retention
consulting
- recruitment strategy consulting
For more
information on these services
Contact Dan at
(888) 276-6789
or
dan@consearch.com
Visit us on the
web at www.consearch.com
Daniel C.
Simmons, CPC
Certified Personnel Consultant
Continental Search
& Outplacement, Inc.
P O Box 43873
Baltimore, MD
21236
Know someone who
could
benefit from the information
in the article? Please
forward
this to them.
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A monthly online publication
designed to help employers recruit, recognize, reward, and retain
their workforce.
The Housing
Market’s Impact on Recruiting Top Talent
(By
Dan Simmons)
It seems like every day
there are stories in the news about the housing market and how bad
it’s becoming. The
newspapers and Internet are replete with statistics about how
difficult it is to sell a house and how it’s going to get worse
before it gets better.
So what exactly does this
mean for companies looking to hire the best and brightest in the
market? It means the
degree of difficulty is higher than ever before.
Understanding the
challenges
Let’s start with the fact
that this is a candidates’ market. Even if you were to take the
current housing woes out of the equation, candidates are firmly in
the driver’s seat. That
translates into multiple offers from numerous companies, not to
mention counteroffers from their current employer. Under just those
circumstances, wooing the candidates you need is no walk in the
park. Throw in today’s
housing market, and you can understand how building a team of
superstars can seem next to impossible.
The first step to
addressing the challenges that the housing market presents is to
understand what they are.
In other words, you should strive to understand what
challenges the candidates are facing and how those challenges
are affecting the decisions they make regarding job changes and
relocation. Below are
some of those challenges:
- The candidate
lives in an area of the country hit hardest by the housing
crunch. People
all over the nation are finding it next to impossible to sell
their homes right now, and the offers they are receiving are well
below what they paid for the house. Many people have had their
house on the market for 12 to 18 months, and in some cases even
longer, with no end in sight. According to CNN, the top
four cities with the highest foreclosure rates are Cleveland, Atlanta, Denver and Detroit. In addition, the top four
states with the highest foreclosure rates are California, Florida, Nevada, and Texas. Clearly, this isn’t just a
regional or localized phenomenon.
- The candidate
has a variable interest loan. According to CNN, over two
million homeowners with Adjustable Rate Mortgages (ARMS) will have
their mortgage “re-set” between now and the end of the year. As for the remaining
75%? Their mortgages
will re-set next year, translating into higher mortgage payments
and less financial flexibility. If a candidate has poor
credit and is in this situation, they won’t qualify for a new
loan. In other words,
not only might they be having trouble selling their house, they
won’t be able to buy another one, either.
- The candidate
has a spouse who is reluctant to sell the house at a
loss. Let’s say,
for example, that the candidate is willing to sell their house,
even at a loss. That
doesn’t mean their spouse will feel the same way. And sometimes the
candidate isn’t even aware this is the case until they accept an
offer of employment.
As you might imagine, this can generate uncertainty,
stress, and reluctance to ultimately make a
move.
Understanding the
reactions
So—what’s the end
result? Candidates are
turning down offers that include substantial pay and benefit
increases. To
illustrate the point, it’s become almost commonplace for candidates
to turn down excellent opportunities to advance their careers, some
with significant compensation increases, because they believe they
won’t be able to sell their house.
Sound crazy? Not to candidates who are
stuck in these situations.
And this may be just the tip of the iceberg, since the
housing market may not have hit rock bottom yet. If its decline continues to
drag out for another year, or even longer, what does it mean for
companies that are vying for talent in an effort to become as
productive as possible?
It means that not only do they need to understand the
challenges of the housing market and the reactions of candidates,
they also have to provide practical and attractive
solutions—solutions that will tip the balance of power back in their
favor.
A company’s ability to
devise and offer these solutions will mean the difference between
landing superstars and watching candidate after candidate turn down
generous offers of employment.
(In next month’s
issue, we’ll discuss a concrete plan of action for addressing the
challenges of today’s housing market. More than ever, candidates
need solutions for combating these challenges, and by offering
solutions you’ll set yourself apart from the competition. If you’d like a preview of
what these solutions are, you can reach me by telephone at 410-529-7000
.)
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