Looking for a job is like dating, most people are generally in their best behavior. I understand some companies may not pay for local hires, but if they’ve found a good candidate they should be a lot more accommodating when it comes travel or time. If he is my kid, I would have him call the company and let them know his travel would be 1000+ and see if they could help out, or let them know by delaying it by a week his travel could be less. If they would do nothing then it should tell him something. Most firms, especially finance firms, have some leeway when it comes to expenses and $1000 is not that much money for them.
Many firms are hiring data analysts now and they are not easy to come by. As someone mentioned, Austin is a booming town, maybe it would make sense for him to move down there first and then look for a job.
Since your S has decided to go, he should look for discounted last-minute flights. There are websites that call these out, just google something like “last minute discounted flights”. Also certain flights tend to be cheaper if he has flexibility, like Sunday departures tend to be cheap, also redeyes and early afternoon tend to be cheaper. And of course there’s skiplagging if he’s willing to try it. Once he’s found a good fare then he can propose that as the interview date.
He should document his job hunt expenses and see if they are tax deductible next filing time.
When I hire for an entry level job I don’t even consider candidates from outside a certain radius from the office. However if they don’t put in a location and I do contact them I wouldn’t pay to bring them in to interview. I would do skype interviews if they were moving to the area, but I wouldn’t be interested in paying for transportation and moving costs.
On the flip side I did relocate someone to a different state and I did pay for all costs associated with moving and getting set up.
Hubby has been flown across the country for interviews and they were fully paid for but it was generally higher level jobs with the territory being where he lived, but the home office was elsewhere.
The bottom line is that for a job that pays well, travel expenses from outside the region wouldn’t be a significant cost factor (relative to compensation) for the employer, so they are likely to be covered. The inverse is, unfortunately, also true.
Is there a way he can try and arrange other interviews while he is in town, or to try and network a little - so maybe if this job doesn’t work out he can get all the value out of it he can? I know if he has already made flight plans he may not have the time. But even if he can drive around and check on some areas for him and GF to live. I would make the trip as productive as possible.
Just checking t9 see what happened with this. Did he go on interview? Did he get the job? Fingers crossed for good news.
@1214mom , He got the job!!! That was $700 well spent for travel. He had his final interview last Friday and they just called him an hour ago! Will be sending a formal letter. 50% more in salary than what he was making and a bonus at the end of the year. Sounds like they will be working him. He is SO relieved. We are, too. He starts in 6 weeks. He will have to find a short term place for a few weeks as the apartment won’t be available until August 12. I’m not really comfy with him living with his GF, but oh well.
I am so happy for him, but my heart is incredibly heavy and I’m fighting back tears. I really never thought he’d leave them state. I don’t know how you al get through this.
Now, I’m trying to figure out how to help him get down. I’ll probably have to drive my van down with my other son. Just the thought of a 1100 mile trip there and then back makes me cry even harder.
“50% more in salary than what he was making and a bonus at the end of the year.”
Wow! That’s fantastic! And in the city he wants to live in with his girlfriend.
@conmama Time for you to plan some trips to Austin. Definitely do the road trip with him if you can swing it. My mom helped me with a cross country move many decades ago and it was a fun bonding experience. We were just talking about it a couple weeks ago. 
Great news @conmama. I’m sure it’s a little bittersweet for you, but it sounds like he’s doing well.
Congrats! I did the long-distance trip the other direction with my ds1, and it was great.
FYI, we rented a UHaul one way, and the policy was that with a one-way rental you got a free month of storage at the arriving destination. Worked great for us. He lived in a temporary place for a couple of weeks, and then when he moved to his permanent location he took over a bit at a time. See whether that’s still an option. Y’all could take his and the gf’s stuff down. That’s what ds1 and his gf is doing for their relocation to Nashville in a few weeks.