Austin job creation slower, but still outpacing rivals

Employment in the Austin-Round Rock region increased 1.9 percent between October 2007 and October 2008, outpacing many of Austin’s economic development competitors, according to data released Tuesday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The local region added about 14,700 jobs in the 12-month period, bringing its total employment figure to roughly 781,000, according to the report.

By comparison:
• San Jose, Calif. added 700 jobs for a 0.8 percent increase
• Raleigh, N.C. added 8,800 jobs for a 1.7 percent increase
• Nashville, Tenn. lost 2,200 jobs for a 0.3 percent decrease
• Seattle lost 1,900 jobs for a 0.1 percent decrease
• Phoenix lost nearly 50,000 jobs for a 2.3 percent decrease
• San Antonio added 17,900 jobs for a 2.9 percent increase
• Memphis, Tenn. lost 10,800 jobs for a 1.7 percent decrease
• Albany, NY remained stagnant.

Austin keeps truckin' on job creation

Providing more evidence of Austin's economic resilience, the region added 4,100 jobs last month with big gains in sectors such as hospitality and professional and business services.
The April additions included 900 new positions each in the government and leisure/hospitality sectors. Professional/business services added 500 jobs as did retail trade, according to the latest figures from the Texas Workforce Commission.

In the last year, Austin has gained 20,100 jobs for an annual growth rate of 2.7 percent. Retail trade added 2,900 jobs since April 2007; professional/business services added 5,700 positions, leisure and hospitality grew by 2,900 and government increased by 3,700 jobs. The largest job declines came in the manufacturing sector, which saw a year-over-year drop of 2,100 positions.

The unemployment rate in the Austin-Round Rock area stood at 3.3 percent in April, down from 3.2 percent a year earlier. That remains better than the Texas unemployment rate at 3.9 percent and the national rate at 4.8 percent.
Texas employers added a total of 15,400 jobs in April for a 12-month job increase of 262,000 positions since April 2007.

Austin Business Journal

Austin Housing Demand Still Higher than Average

By OLGA CAMPOS KVUE News

Nationally, home sales in January fell to the lowest level in nearly a decade while the median price for a home continues to decline. But in Austin, it's the opposite. While sales are down from year to year, 2007 is still on record as the second best ever for home sales with an increase in the median price.

In Austin sales are up 4 percent, the median price is up by 7 percent with houses staying on the market for about four months. While nationally home sales dropped by 13 percent with the median price down by 6 percent. Houses are staying on the market for more than nine months before selling.

The Austin Board of Realtors says homes sales in January 2008 are down 10 percent from January of the previous year, but even with that month-to-month decline, Gay Puckett, of J.B. Goodwin Realtors, says Austin is a hot housing market. "It was the second best year in the history of Austin real estate," says Puckett.

She says new homes are selling, others are being remodeled and local businesses are booming in neighborhoods like Crestview.
"It makes me thrilled because we just bought our house a year ago," said Jaime Brydson. Brydson is tracking the value of her new home in her North Central Austin neighborhood.
"I read the paper and I'll see how percentage wise our property has already gone up in the past year. I feel like not only did we get a great house, but we made a fantastic investment," she said.
Experts predict 41,000 new jobs will be created over the next two years making increasing population and new employment the key reasons why the local housing market stays in better shape than the national average.

Here are more housing stats: 1,321 single family homes sold last month and the Median price of a home was $183,000.

05:47 PM CST on Monday, February 25, 2008

Forbes votes Austin one of the Best Cities For Jobs In 2008

The Lone Star State shines brilliantly in a list of the best places to work in the U.S. when some economists peer into their crystal balls for 2008.
Austin, Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio all rank high on the latest forecast data from Moody's Economy.com. McAllen, Texas, is expected to have the highest job growth rate, as its leisure and hospitality, educational and health services and commercial construction jobs flourish.
"While the economy is cooling, Texas continues to generate more jobs than the national average," said Krista Piferrer, deputy press secretary to Gov. Rick Perry. "Unemployment is low in Texas, thanks in large part to a favorable business climate that encourages businesses to expand or relocate to our state."In Pictures: Best Cities For Jobs 2008
Even still, Salt Lake City, in all its tech-job abundance, looks like it will remain No. 1 since Forbes.com's most recent ranking ( see last year's story).
To compile the rankings for the Best Cities For Jobs list forecast, we used five data points, weighted equally: the state's unemployment rate, job growth, income growth, median household income and cost of living for full-year 2006 (only partial data is available so far for 2007). We measured the largest 100 metropolitan areas, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, and obtained the data from Moody's Economy.com.
The numbers are compiled based on greater metropolitan areas; it's also important to note that this list doesn't weigh specifics like job composition or job stability, two significant characteristics that will appeal to any job seeker.
Mark Zandi, chief economist and co-founder of Moody's Economy.com, acknowledged the housing market depression the company is facing and said the destinations that prevail on this list weren't as heavily vested in the real estate development boom, which ultimately led to a historic bust.
That's not to say the highest-ranking cities on this list are completely in the clear, though: "If we have a national recession, if problems intensify nationwide, these economies are going to struggle," Zandi said.
The top cities on this list also include Atlanta, plentiful in transportation, distribution and financial services careers. Indianapolis has a strong showing in agriculture, too. Omaha, Neb., Warren Buffet's hometown, offers jobs at opposite ends of the spectrum, in financial services and agriculture as well. The Emerald City--Seattle--brings aerospace and global trade professions to the table.
Kurt Ronn, president and founder of HRworks, an Atlanta-based job recruitment and consulting firm, said Americans gravitate to certain locales based on opportunity and affordability, both offered right in his backyard.
He noted that, on a broad scale, the employment picture has been strong in the areas of technology and logistics, such as in distribution and sales.
Some notables: Honolulu is the best in the pack for low unemployment, a good sign that tourism there remains healthy. Edison, N.J., ranked the highest in the median income category. Buffalo, N.Y., has the lowest cost of living, while San Jose, Calif., has the highest. New York sits at No. 58 on the list, while Los Angeles is No. 87.

http://www.forbes.com/leadership/2008/01/10/jobs-economy-growth-lead-careers-cx_mk_0110cities.html