Woman is days away from moving to Tampa for her dream job. Then the company suddenly revokes her offer: ‘I know that’s a lie’
Getting a dream job can make it feel safe to start planning everything that comes next. That can include quitting an old job, finding an apartment, and getting ready to move.
But those decisions are much harder to undo when the new job suddenly disappears. At that point, someone may be left trying to figure out where they are supposed to go next.
TikTok creator Ava (@ava.is.a.mess18) says she ended up in exactly that position three days before moving to Tampa, Florida. She had already quit her job and signed a lease when she received unexpected news about her new position.
Everything was already set
Ava says she was supposed to move to Tampa on a Thursday and had already found an apartment there. She had also quit her job in St. Louis in preparation for the move. “I got my dream job. I found a beautiful apartment, and I was set to be down there on Thursday,” she says.
Then an email changed those plans. Getting told you have a job does not always mean the hiring process is over. According to Ava, the company told her it was revoking her hiring process because she had submitted required documentation “later than they would have liked.” Ava does not say in the video whether the company had given her a specific deadline for submitting the documents or exactly how late she submitted them.
The consequences were immediate. Ava says she lost the Tampa job, while her old position in St. Louis had already been filled. “So I am jobless,” she says. Her St. Louis lease was also ending on Aug. 17, and she had already signed a lease for her new place. She had gotten rid of enough belongings that she no longer had a bed in her current apartment.
That left her questioning whether she should continue with the Florida move anyway. “Do I go down to Florida anyways?” she asks. “I’m in the same predicament in both places. Jobless.” Ava says she called an HR representative after receiving the email and asked whether there was anything she could do to save the opportunity. According to her, the representative said no because the position had already been filled.
That explanation confused Ava. She says she checked the company’s website and Indeed and found the position still listed. “Well, I know that’s a lie, because I literally went on their website and the position is still there and still on Indeed,” she says.
A job listing remaining online does not necessarily mean the position is still available. Ava does not confirm whether the listing was current or another candidate had accepted the job. Still, she says she reapplied after finding it.
Despite being upset, Ava takes responsibility for submitting the documents late. “It’s no one else’s fault but mine,” she says, adding that she wished they had told her sooner. Moving to Tampa had been a longtime goal, but she now had to cancel her planned dinner party and figure out what to do next. “I feel like such a failure,” she says.
Commenters largely focused on the paperwork and questioned why the documents were not submitted sooner. “‘I submitted my documentation later than they would have liked’ is an interesting way to frame ‘I missed the deadline,’” one viewer wrote. “If it was my dream job I would’ve had it submitted asap omg,” another said.
Others encouraged Ava not to abandon the move entirely. One commenter suggested, “Still move to Tampa and search for a job there.” Another agreed, writing, “If you already signed the lease in Tampa, just start applying for other jobs in Tampa and still go.”
For now, Ava says the experience is a setback, even if she does not yet know what comes next. “It’s fine,” she says. “I’ll find something better. Maybe.”
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