raguraam -
As someone coming from the US, I generally would agree with the comments that the higher salaries are harder to find. A big part depends on how much you're making now... If you're making 80k USD, as an example, you may be able to find something in the UK at 60-70k GBP. But - It might take a bit longer to find the right job at the right salary than it would take in the states, especially if you don't come with UK experience.
There are some good websites out there.. reed.co.uk, jobsite.com, etc. The people on this forum probably have even better sites, but those are couple that I used regularly.
The salaries might be higher here, but then again, so are the costs. I'm assuming from your comments that you're thinking about London - To find a flat in zone 1 in central london will cost from 250k GBP upwards. The lower end of that price range might get you 1 small bedroom, living room and Spam (maybe even galley Spam).. think NYC walkup... to get an idea of property prices, there are a lot of websites.. I generally use findaproperty.com, or hotproperty.co.uk.. They'll give you an idea of costs.. Houses in zone 1 are crazy expensive.. think in the neighborhood of 600-700k GBP plus.. it gets cheaper the farther you move out of central london.. it is possible to find houses with 3 bedrooms in the low to mid-300's within an hour commute from central london..
Overall cost of living in the UK is higher, and not just for property. There are several sites that do free cost of living comparisons...
http://www.easyexpat.com/mod/cost_en.htm will compare NY and San Francisco costs with London or other European cities. If you're in another area of the US, the average cost of living in the UK is around 175% higher than the average US cost. If you're in an expensive place already in the US, then the difference in prices in London might not be as great as that..
About recruiters - I have used recruiters successfully in the UK, so I think they can be reputable. The recruiting process is different here, though. In the US, companies will generally have 'preferred' recruiters, and they use only those few recruiters that they have relationships with. In the UK, one job can go out to many recruiters, so they are competing against eachother to get the best candidates forward in the fastest time possible. This makes is a bit harder to develop a relationship with a recruiter and to rely on that person to help you in your job hunt. But it also means that if you have your CV out on all the sites and you're networking, it's likely that one of the recruiters will contact you for an appropriate job if it comes up. I had several cases where I received 2 or 3 calls from different recruiters all calling for the same thing.
Hope the comments helps.
