In each Economic Update, the Research staff analyzes recently released economic indicators and addresses what these indicators mean for REALTORS® and their clients. Today’s update discusses the latest in employment conditions.
- The national economy continues to heal and move ahead. A total of 7.5 million net new jobs have been added in the past 4 years following the disastrous 8 million net job cuts during the Great Recession. In the past 12 months, 2.3 million net new jobs have been added, representing a growth rate of 1.7 percent for the country as a whole.
- Some states and metro markets are doing much better than the national job growth rate while others are faring much worse. North Dakota continues to shine due principally to massive new oil and gas production. The southern states of Texas, Florida, and Georgia have robust job growth. Alabama and D.C. (just the city proper and not the suburbs) are stalled with net zero job creation. Alaska lost some jobs. Puerto Rico is under tremendous stress with 4.3 percent fewer jobs, portending a possible government bankruptcy like one experienced in Detroit.
- Among the metro markets, several small Florida markets are on fire (Sebastian-Vero Beach growing at +8.1%; Naples +7.9%; and Port St. Lucie +6.1%). The energy cities of Odessa and Midland are also moving fast with a 5% growth rate. Among the large cities, there are three standouts: Tampa-St. Petersburg (+3.3%), Houston (+3.1%), and Nashville (+3.1%).
- The table below shows the ranking of states and U.S. territories:
By: Lawrence Yun (Economist’s Outlook)
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