The recession has turned America’s economy on its head, but Texas is faring relatively well, according to a new study.
High-profile states that led the charge to prosperity earlier in the decade are now among the biggest drags on economic progress. Nevada, Arizona, Florida, California and Georgia rank among the seven weakest states today, according to an analysis by Bizjournals, an affiliate of the Houston Business Journal.
Small, underpublicized states, on the other hand, are faring remarkably well in these tough times. North Dakota, Louisiana, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Alaska and West Virginia are among the seven strongest states economically. Texas comes in as the 10th-strongest state.
Bizjournals analyzed the recent economic records of all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Each state’s results were compared to corresponding national averages in six categories. Above-average performances received positive scores, while below-average numbers drew negative scores.
The study focused on the following indicators, using raw data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis and Federal Housing Finance Agency
• Unemployment rate
• Nonfarm employment growth
• Personal income growth
• Wage growth
• Home value growth
• Construction employment growth
North Dakota, surprisingly to many, emerged as America’s economic powerhouse, ranking first in Bizjournals’ overall standings. It’s the only state with an unemployment rate below 5 percent. And it’s the only one with positive growth rates in all five remaining categories during the past 12 months.
The news is far worse in Nevada, the weakest state in Bizjournals’ standings. Nevada’s unemployment rate has soared to 12 percent, its job base has shrunk by 6.2 percent since mid-2008, and its home values have plummeted 31.1 percent during the same span.
Michigan ranks next-to-last in economic strength, followed by Arizona, Florida and California. These four states all lost more than 5 percent of their jobs during the past year. Their wage levels and home values have also dropped substantially.
The population gap between America’s strongest and weakest states is striking. Four of the 10 strongholds have fewer than 1 million residents, while each of the 10 weaklings has more than 2.7 million people. Texas, in many respects, appears as an anomaly in that it is faring well and has a large population.
The cumulative population of the Top 10 states is 42 million, with No. 10 Texas (25 million) accounting for more than half of that total. The bottom 10 states, taken as a group, are nearly three times as populous with 118 million residents.
Texas’ ranking in the Bizjournals analysis caps a string of similar studies proclaiming the state as one of the best to weather the recession. Houston collected similar recognition in April when it was named seventh on the Forbes.com list of the Top 10 “Recession-Proof Cities” in the United States.
Forbes.com examined key measures such as unemployment data, nonfarm related job growth, median home prices and data from a 2007 report, “U.S. Metro Economies: The Mortgage Crisis” by the U.S. Conference of Mayors.
By: Bizjournals.com
Friday, November 20, 2009
Friday, March 28, 2008
Census: Texas is the hot place to live
By PAUL J. WEBER - Associated Press WriterPublished 9:35 am PDT Thursday, March 27, 2008
Four Texas metropolitan areas were among the biggest population gainers as Americans continued their trend of moving to the Sun Belt in 2006 and 2007, according to Census Bureau estimates to be released Thursday.
Dallas-Fort Worth added more than 162,000 residents between July 2006 and July 2007, more than any other metro area. Three other Texas areas - Houston, Austin and San Antonio - also cracked the top 10.
Atlanta saw the second-largest population jump with just over 151,000 new residents. Phoenix was third with more than 132,000, and was followed by Houston, Riverside, Calif., Charlotte, N.C., Chicago, Austin, Las Vegas and San Antonio.
Of the 50 fastest-growing metro areas, 27 were in the South and 20 were in the West. Two were in the Midwest, one - Fayetteville, Ark. - straddles the South and Midwest and none was in the Northeast.
Detroit lost more than three times as many people as any other metro area - its population declined more than 27,300. Other areas losing more than 5,000 people were Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Columbus, Ga., Youngstown, Ohio, and Buffalo, N.Y.
Experts credit much of the growth in the South to relatively strong local economies and housing prices that are among the most affordable in the U.S.
"People are running away from unaffordable housing, from the economic slowdown," said Karl Eschbach, a state demographer in Texas. "I would expect Texas to stay at the top of a slowing game."
According to figures compiled by Eschbach, 16 percent of Americans who moved to other states between July 2006 and July 2007 came to Texas, which led the nation for the second straight year in that category.
Home prices continue to be a big factor. A report earlier this month by Global Insight found that housing prices in the Dallas area were undervalued by as much as 30 percent.
Ann Sekesan, a pharmacy technician, moved her family from Pennsylvania to suburban Fort Worth last June after seeing spacious homes in Texas for under $200,000 on a television show.
"After we saw that on TV, my husband and I looked at each other and said, 'Have you ever been to Texas?" Sekesan said. "It's amazing the size of a home you can get down here. It's just incredible."
Among other Census Bureau findings:
- On a percentage basis, the Palm Coast, Fla., area was the fastest-growing in the nation. Population there jumped by 7.2 percent to more than 88,000. The next areas experiencing the biggest surge in growth were St. George, Utah; Raleigh, N.C; Gainesville, Ga.; and Austin.
The New Orleans area, recovering from Hurricane Katrina, grew by 4 percent or nearly 40,000 people, putting it 16th in terms of raw numbers but eighth for percentage growth. During the same survey last year, the population of New Orleans dropped by nearly 290,000 people.
Four Texas metropolitan areas were among the biggest population gainers as Americans continued their trend of moving to the Sun Belt in 2006 and 2007, according to Census Bureau estimates to be released Thursday.
Dallas-Fort Worth added more than 162,000 residents between July 2006 and July 2007, more than any other metro area. Three other Texas areas - Houston, Austin and San Antonio - also cracked the top 10.
Atlanta saw the second-largest population jump with just over 151,000 new residents. Phoenix was third with more than 132,000, and was followed by Houston, Riverside, Calif., Charlotte, N.C., Chicago, Austin, Las Vegas and San Antonio.
Of the 50 fastest-growing metro areas, 27 were in the South and 20 were in the West. Two were in the Midwest, one - Fayetteville, Ark. - straddles the South and Midwest and none was in the Northeast.
Detroit lost more than three times as many people as any other metro area - its population declined more than 27,300. Other areas losing more than 5,000 people were Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Columbus, Ga., Youngstown, Ohio, and Buffalo, N.Y.
Experts credit much of the growth in the South to relatively strong local economies and housing prices that are among the most affordable in the U.S.
"People are running away from unaffordable housing, from the economic slowdown," said Karl Eschbach, a state demographer in Texas. "I would expect Texas to stay at the top of a slowing game."
According to figures compiled by Eschbach, 16 percent of Americans who moved to other states between July 2006 and July 2007 came to Texas, which led the nation for the second straight year in that category.
Home prices continue to be a big factor. A report earlier this month by Global Insight found that housing prices in the Dallas area were undervalued by as much as 30 percent.
Ann Sekesan, a pharmacy technician, moved her family from Pennsylvania to suburban Fort Worth last June after seeing spacious homes in Texas for under $200,000 on a television show.
"After we saw that on TV, my husband and I looked at each other and said, 'Have you ever been to Texas?" Sekesan said. "It's amazing the size of a home you can get down here. It's just incredible."
Among other Census Bureau findings:
- On a percentage basis, the Palm Coast, Fla., area was the fastest-growing in the nation. Population there jumped by 7.2 percent to more than 88,000. The next areas experiencing the biggest surge in growth were St. George, Utah; Raleigh, N.C; Gainesville, Ga.; and Austin.
The New Orleans area, recovering from Hurricane Katrina, grew by 4 percent or nearly 40,000 people, putting it 16th in terms of raw numbers but eighth for percentage growth. During the same survey last year, the population of New Orleans dropped by nearly 290,000 people.
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