I'm wondering whether I can reasonably pursue the opportunity on my own, and if so, what may be the consequences. Here's the background:
A recruiter recently brought me an interesting opportunity. He asked for my resume, but I encouraged a conversation first, during which he seemed reasonable and professional. After providing my resume we talked again, and things were going very well. At the end of that second conversation he asked my salary range and/or rate range. I felt since I had yet to get an interview that the salary discussion was very premature and (I didn't say this to him, but) not a conversation to be had with a recruiter. He explained that their client requires they provide a salary range and two references when they submit a resume.
Granted its been a while since I've conducted a job search, but this did not seem reasonable.
I knew nothing more about the opportunity than what was in the job description, and nothing about the company except what was available online. Nevertheless, I agreed to work up some numbers; I felt I could provide a very broad range and qualify it as specific to the current opportunity and not to be taken generally. Though I didn't express this, I did not intend to disclose reference information until and unless I got much further along in the process. I then investigated market salaries for the job, calculated what I felt would be fair for my skills and experience, and settled on a pretty wide range. The following Monday we kept missing each other. He suggested a date/time for the next day, at which time I called but he did not pick up, nor did he call back. This is unprofessional, and I don't know what the problem was. He could be in a snit over the timing, or there could be a reasonable explanation. I have since confirmed the job is still available, and I am still interested and very qualified.
Because I am not savvy about the recruitment process, I'm unsure as to the best way to proceed. I am not going to pursue the recruiter. But I would like to pursue the opportunity. Any advice?