Top Cities Unaffected By Recession
November 24, 2009
Some U.S. cities with stable housing and diversified employment have been virtually untouched by the Great Recession.
Analysts say cities that are most likely to leave the recession in the same or better condition than they started it are those where home prices didn’t fluctuate wildly, which spared them the devastating effects of foreclosure, lost jobs, and lost productivity.
If there is a lesson to be learned, experts say, it is that families looking for long-term economic stability should settle in locales with diverse employment and minimal shifts in housing values.
To identify these cities, Forbes magazine ranked the 100 largest Metropolitan Statistical Areas by employment rates, the conventional mortgage home price index, and the average days on the market for properties currently for sale.
The top cities on Forbes list were:
- Omaha/Council Bluffs, Neb.
- San Antonio, Texas
- Austin-Round Rock, Texas
- Pittsburgh, Pa.
- Harrisburg/Carlisle, Pa.
- Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas
- Rochester, N.Y.
- Houston, Texas
- Raleigh/Cary, N.C.
- Baton Rouge, La.
Lone Star Luck
In No. 2 city San Antonio, home to four military bases, and Austin, our third-ranked city and the state seat of government, municipal jobs supplement Texas’ robust energy sector. In Dallas (No. 6), it’s a thriving tech industry that buffers it from energy highs and lows. Although Houston No. 8 is invested mostly in oil, it has diversified its energy industry beyond oil rigs into refining and chemicals manufacturing.
What’s more, the state’s housing prices never ascended to the unsustainable levels the rest of the country hit at the peak of the housing bubble. Thus, it didn’t crash as hard. These factors have toughened the local economy against a recession that is inextricably tied to real estate.
“Texas didn’t have as big of a boom,” says James P. Gaines, research economist at the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University. “So we’re not having anywhere near the kind of bust.”
Full List: America’s Fastest-Recovering Cities
Read the entire article at Forbes.com written by Francesca Levy.
BusinessWeek.com Ranks The 40 Strongest Metros In The U.S.
October 23, 2009
San Antonio, TX
Overall rank: 1
San Antonio, the second-largest city in Texas and the site of the battle of the Alamo, has one of the strongest job markets in the nation. Construction, which slowed during the recession, remains relatively robust, in part because of a new JW Marriott, a Caterpillar plant now under construction, as well as school, hospital, and military projects. Employment in San Antonio peaked in the second quarter of last year. Gross metropolitan product in the second quarter was down just 0.8% from the peak in the third quarter of 2008. Home prices grew 3.1% in the second quarter compared with the same period a year earlier. And the unemployment rate in June was 6.9%, up 2 points from a year earlier. (Please see below for the various criteria used by the Brookings Institution to determine the overall ranking.)
Job growth (since peak) rank: 3
Gross Metro Product (since peak) rank: 5
Unemployment change (year over year) rank: 4
Home price change (year over year) rank: 10
Click here to see the 40 strongest metros in the U.S.
Forbes America’s Recession-Proof Cities To Retire In
October 16, 2009
Four cities in the Lone Star State make the list. The Dallas-Ft. Worth metro area; Houston, just two spots behind it; Austin at No. 6; and San Antonio in the No. 10 spot. All four cities are benefiting from some positive Texan trends.
“In Texas, it was a relatively mild recession,” says Eduardo Martinez, senior economist at Moody’s Economy.com. “All our projections are for quite a bit of growth. In terms of job creation, more people are moving out there, and families are getting bigger. The fundamentals for Texas are a lot stronger than those of other peer large states.”
Behind the Numbers
To form our list, we looked at the country’s 40 largest metropolitan statistical areas and measured them for: current median home price and five-year projected home price from Moody’s Economy.com; median monthly housing expense from the Census Bureau; cost of living index from the Council for Community and Economic Research; median income for householders over age 65 from the Census Bureau; five-year job growth outlook from Moody’s Economy.com; and, since every retiree should get some sunshine in their golden years, we included sunny day statistics from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The figures here represent each city’s rank based on the measures above.
| Rank | Metro Area | Metro Population | Sunny Days | Income 65 and over | Median Home Price | Home Price Change ‘09-’14 | Job Growth Forecast ‘09-’14 | Cost of Living | Median Monthly Housing Cost | TOTAL |
| 1 | Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA | 5,376,285 | 17 | 17 | 7 | 17 | 5 | 11 | 23 | 97 |
| 2 | Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 6,300,006 | 16 | 10 | 17 | 35 | 3 | 6 | 16 | 103 |
| 3 | Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | 2,733,761 | 9 | 35 | 10 | 22 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 107 |
| 4 | Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX | 5,728,143 | 21 | 18 | 15 | 33 | 4 | 4 | 13 | 108 |
| 5 | St. Louis, MO-IL | 2,816,710 | 26 | 27 | 6 | 29 | 17 | 3 | 4 | 112 |
| 5 | Austin-Round Rock, TX | 1,652,602 | 17 | 4 | 24 | 34 | 1 | 14 | 18 | 112 |
| 7 | Las Vegas-Paradise, NV | 1,865,746 | 1 | 9 | 12 | 26 | 10 | 25 | 30 | 113 |
| 8 | Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ | 4,281,899 | 1 | 15 | 8 | 20 | 14 | 34 | 22 | 114 |
| 9 | Kansas City, MO-KS | 2,002,047 | 17 | 22 | 11 | 28 | 16 | 15 | 8 | 117 |
| 10 | San Antonio, TX | 2,031,445 | 17 | 28 | 16 | 36 | 2 | 19 | 2 | 120 |
| 11 | Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC | 1,701,799 | 15 | 30 | 23 | 21 | 9 | 12 | 12 | 122 |
| 12 | Columbus, OH | 1,773,120 | 35 | 26 | 9 | 9 | 30 | 8 | 9 | 126 |
| 12 | San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA | 3,001,072 | 8 | 5 | 36 | 5 | 26 | 9 | 37 | 126 |
| 14 | Jacksonville, FL | 1,313,228 | 13 | 8 | 14 | 32 | 34 | 13 | 15 | 129 |
| 15 | Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | 3,229,878 | 22 | 14 | 21 | 10 | 13 | 22 | 29 | 131 |
| 16 | Denver-Aurora, CO /1 | 2,506,626 | 7 | 16 | 27 | 22 | 12 | 23 | 25 | 132 |
| 16 | Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Roseville, CA | 2,109,832 | 3 | 7 | 20 | 14 | 27 | 30 | 31 | 132 |
| 18 | Indianapolis-Carmel, IN | 1,715,459 | 31 | 34 | 3 | 27 | 32 | 2 | 6 | 135 |
| 19 | Pittsburgh, PA | 2,351,192 | 40 | 38 | 5 | 4 | 28 | 20 | 1 | 136 |
| 20 | Cincinnati-Middletown, OH-KY-IN | 2,155,137 | 35 | 33 | 4 | 19 | 36 | 5 | 7 | 139 |
| 21 | Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | 4,115,871 | 4 | 24 | 18 | 24 | 7 | 31 | 34 | 142 |
| 22 | Nashville-Davidson- Murfreesboro-Franklin, TN |
1,550,733 | 28 | 25 | 19 | 30 | 15 | 27 | 5 | 149 |
| 22 | Detroit-Warren-Livonia, MI | 4,425,110 | 34 | 31 | 2 | 7 | 40 | 21 | 14 | 149 |
| 22 | Chicago-Naperville-Joliet, IL-IN-WI | 9,569,624 | 32 | 21 | 26 | 6 | 20 | 18 | 26 | 149 |
| 25 | San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | 4,274,531 | 9 | 3 | 40 | 2 | 23 | 36 | 38 | 151 |
| 26 | Orlando-Kissimmee, FL | 2,054,574 | 9 | 29 | 13 | 39 | 6 | 37 | 19 | 152 |
| 27 | Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | 3,344,813 | 39 | 6 | 37 | 1 | 8 | 33 | 33 | 157 |
| 27 | San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | 1,819,198 | 9 | 2 | 39 | 3 | 24 | 40 | 40 | 157 |
| 29 | Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC | 1,658,292 | 13 | 11 | 28 | 38 | 22 | 26 | 20 | 158 |
| 29 | Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL | 5,414,772 | 6 | 37 | 22 | 40 | 25 | 1 | 27 | 158 |
| 31 | Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, OH | 2,088,291 | 37 | 40 | 1 | 25 | 37 | 16 | 3 | 159 |
| 31 | Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA | 12,872,808 | 4 | 12 | 33 | 15 | 21 | 39 | 35 | 159 |
| 33 | Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA | 2,207,462 | 38 | 32 | 31 | 11 | 19 | 7 | 24 | 162 |
| 34 | Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 5,838,471 | 28 | 39 | 30 | 8 | 29 | 17 | 21 | 172 |
| 35 | Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 5,358,130 | 28 | 1 | 34 | 16 | 18 | 38 | 39 | 174 |
| 36 | Baltimore-Towson, MD | 2,667,117 | 26 | 13 | 32 | 18 | 31 | 32 | 28 | 180 |
| 37 | Providence-New Bedford-Fall River, RI-MA | 1,596,611 | 22 | 36 | 29 | 13 | 35 | 29 | 17 | 181 |
| 38 | Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH | 4,522,858 | 22 | 19 | 35 | 12 | 33 | 35 | 36 | 192 |
| 39 | Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI | 1,549,308 | 32 | 23 | 25 | 37 | 38 | 28 | 11 | 194 |
| 40 | New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA | 19,006,798 | 22 | 20 | 38 | 31 | 39 | 24 | 32 | 206 |
Forbes Ranks The Best Cities For Recession Recovery
June 13, 2009
The three most important things in real estate: location, location, location.
It’s true for recovery from a real estate bubble too. Overall, many economists expect the national economy to return to growth later in 2009, perhaps as soon as this summer. But that won’t be the case everywhere. While some cities are poised for a quick rebound, others face a slog to recovery that could take years.
Poised for swift recovery are many Texas cities, such as Austin, San Antonio, Dallas and McAllen. These areas did not see the massive real estate bubble that formed in states like California, Nevada and Florida. The economy is diverse, with heavy growth coming from education and health care in recent years.
Read the entire article written by Joshua Zumbrun at Forbes.com
Best Cities Poised for Recovery
Austin-Round Rock, Texas
Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, Ark.
Boulder, Colo.
Huntsville, Ala.
San Antonio, Texas
Mobile, Ala.
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, D.C.-Va.-Md.-W.Va.
McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Texas
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Wash.
Relocation.com Announces Best Cities for a Fresh Start Rankings
May 21, 2009
With the unemployment rate climbing as the national economy sags, more people are searching for communities that offer greater economic opportunity and a better standard of living. To help, Relocation.com, the leading online consumer resource for moving services, has compiled its list of “Best Cities for a Fresh Start.”
Unlike many lists that focus solely on the economy, Relocation.com took a wide-ranging look at factors that would appeal to someone looking for a fresh start: city ‘popularity’ based on consumer requests for moving quotes to move to that city; economic-growth prospects; home affordability; and the strength of a community as reflected by volunteerism rates.
Austin achieved the top spot with its high ranking on each of those criteria. Buoyed by a vibrant tech community and anchored by government institutions such as the University of Texas and the state capitol, Austin ranked in the top 10 for popularity, job growth and its volunteerism rate, and a higher ranking for home affordability.
It was followed by the Dallas/Fort Worth area, an economically diverse region that benefits from Texas’ energy riches – and also by the fact that its housing market didn’t get too inflated during the big run-up in housing prices. In the third spot is Charlotte, N.C., which has a more diverse economy, with strength in finance, and high rankings for popularity and volunteerism.
The top 20 cities:
1. Austin, Texas 10. Las Vegas, Nev. (tie)
2. Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas 10. Seattle, Wash. (tie)
3. Charlotte, N.C. 13. Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.(tie)
4. Denver, Colo. 13. Raleigh-Durham, N.C.(tie)
5. Columbus, Ohio (tie) 15. San Antonio, Texas
5. Indianapolis, Ind. (tie) 16. Portland, Ore.
7. Washington, D.C.-Baltimore, Md. 17. Cincinnati, Ohio
8. Atlanta, Ga. 18. Pittsburgh, Pa.
9. Oklahoma City, Okla. 19. Memphis, Tenn.
10. Houston, Texas (tie) 20. Cleveland, Ohio
“Studies have shown that many people don’t like where they live. At the same time, a lot of people are looking for work, whether they’re unemployed now or fearing layoffs. It’s a scary time, but for some it might be a good time to think about starting over. So, we identified some good locations to consider for people looking to start with a clean slate in a new community,” says Sharon Asher, chairman and founder, Relocation.com.
List Criteria
Relocation.com looked at communities with more than 1 million people. Although many midsized cities are flourishing, they tend to be tied to a single industry or a government agency, while larger cities generally have more diverse economic bases. The list was determined by four criteria, each of which was weighted equally.
Popular cities: Relocation.com’s moving request data was used to determine the cities that people want to move to, based on the per-capita number of quotes for moving services requested to particular communities in 2008 and year-to-date 2009.
Although an influx of people can put pressure on local resources, these newcomers also bring new ideas, skills and outlooks that can spark economic development and strengthen communal ties. A ‘churn’ of newcomers is vital for a community.
Economic prospects: Forbes.com’s list of the Best Places for Businesses and Careers was used to determine the cities with the greatest job growth prospects over the next three years. The list was published in March 2009.
Affordable housing: Figures from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index were used to determine the best housing opportunities. This report looks at more than 200 of the country’s largest metropolitan areas and determines the percentage of homes sold in the latest quarter that were affordable to the median average family in that area – the higher the percentage, the more affordable housing is to the greatest number of people.
High volunteerism rates: The current recession is radically changing the economic and social landscape. With fewer resources at their disposable, many people will depend more on their neighbors for their economic and social livelihoods.
Relocation.com looked at volunteerism rates from the Corporation of National Community and Service, an independent federal agency whose board of directors and CEO are appointed by the president. Communities with high volunteerism rates tend to be stronger with lower crime rates, and greater volunteerism rates can mean less need for government spending on providing those services. It is healthier too: people who volunteer have lower mortality rates and lower rates of depression than the general population, according to the Corporation.
Forbes Ranks America’s Best Bargain Cities
May 14, 2009
Written by Zack O’Malley Greenburg at Forbes.com
Behind the Numbers
To determine which U.S. cities are the best bargains, Forbes looked at the country’s 50 largest U.S. metropolitan statistical areas and metropolitan divisions–geographic entities defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget used by federal agencies in collecting, tabulating and publishing federal statistics.
We assigned points to metro regions across four data sets: Average salary for workers with a bachelor’s degree or higher, from PayScale.com; annual unemployment statistics, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics; cost of living, from Moody’s Economy.com; and the Housing Opportunity Index, from the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo, which measures the amount of homes sold in a given area that would be affordable to a family earning the local median income based on standard mortgage underwriting criteria.
Lone Star Constellation
While the capital of Texas graced the top of our list, the rest of the state’s large cities performed admirably too. All five of Texas’ biggest burgs–Houston, San Antonio, Dallas and Ft. Worth–were among the top 10 best bargains. Not a single city in Texas ended up on our list of most overpriced places.
Part of the reason is that Texas offers some of the best incentives for entrepreneurs looking to start or move a business, according to Eduardo Martinez, a senior economist at Moody’s Economy.com. Like Phoenix, Texan metros “have picked up a lot of California companies that have left because of high operating costs,” he says.
15. Detroit, Mich.
14. Kansas City, Mo.
11. Cambridge, Mass. (tie)
11. Denver, Colo. (tie)
11. Nashville, Tenn. (tie)
10. San Antonio, Texas
9. Houston, Texas
8. Dallas, Texas
7. Columbus, Ohio
5. Indianapolis, Ind. (tie)
5. Cincinnati, Ohio (tie)
4. Fort Worth, Texas
3. Washington, D.C.
2. Phoenix, Ariz.
1. Austin, Texas
Top 10 Cities For Young College Graduates
May 7, 2009
Thousands of soon-to-be college graduates are planning to relocate this spring. While choosing the best place to settle down can be a daunting decision, the current economic climate has raised the stakes. To provide recent graduates with a reliable resource during a time when they are making “real-world” decisions, Apartments.com, working in conjunction with CBcampus.com -CareerBuilder’s college job search site-has announced today its second annual “Top 10 Best Cities for Recent College Graduates” list.
“Given the current economy, new grads looking to relocate are becoming increasingly concerned with the cost of living as they are faced with more competition for jobs than seen in previous years,” said Tammy Kotula, public relations and promotions manager at Apartments.com. “With these very real concerns weighing on the minds of many, two leading online resources for apartments and jobs have come together to paint a realistic landscape of both the job market and cost of living in the most popular cities for young adults after college.”
The list ranks cities with the highest concentration of adults aged 20 to 24, the inventory of jobs requiring less than one year of experience, and the average cost of rent for a one-bedroom apartment.
Top 10 Best Cities for Recent Average Rent for a One Bedroom
College Graduates Apartment
1. Indianapolis $625
2. Philadelphia $1,034
3. Baltimore $1,130
4. Cincinnati $691
5. Cleveland $686
6. New York $1,548
7. Phoenix $747
8. Denver $877
9. Chicago $1,133
10. San Antonio $696
San Antonio Ranks 3rd for Best Big Cities For Jobs
April 14, 2009
The study is based on job growth in 333 regions–called Metropolitan Statistical Areas by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which provided the data–across the U.S. Our analysis looked not only at job growth in the last year but also at how employment figures have changed since 1996. This is because we are wary of overemphasizing recent data and strive to give a more complete picture of the potential a region has for job-seekers.
The top of the complete ranking–which, for ease, we have broken down into the two smaller lists, of the best big and small cities for jobs–is dominated by one state: Texas. The Lone Star State may have lost a powerful advocate in Washington, but it’s home to a remarkable eight of the top 20 cities on our list–including No. 1-ranked Odessa, a small city in the state’s northwestern region. Further, the top five large metropolitan areas for job growth–Austin, Houston, San Antonio, Ft. Worth and Dallas–are all in Texas’ “urban triangle.”
The reasons for the state’s relative success are varied. A healthy energy industry is certainly one cause. Many Texas high-fliers, including Odessa, Longview, Dallas and Houston, are home to energy companies that employ hordes of people–and usually at fairly high salaries for both blue- and white-collar workers. In some places, these spurts represent a huge reversal from the late 1990s. Take Odessa’s remarkable 5.5% job growth in 2008, which followed a period of growth well under 1% from 1998 to 2002.
No. 10: Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, Ore.-Wash.
No. 9: Oklahoma City, Okla.
No. 8: Raleigh-Cary, N.C.
No. 7: Salt Lake City, Utah
No. 6: Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Wash.
No. 5: Dallas-Plano-Irving, Texas
No. 4: Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas
No. 3: San Antonio, Texas
The education and health care services sector is a large contributor to the employment success stories of the nation’s largest cities, in particular, the fast-growing cities west of the Mississippi. Cumulative growth between 2000 and 2008 for education and health care in San Antonio was 34.2%; so far, no slowdown is reflected in that data. Still, overall jobs increased only 0.5% in 2008, down from cumulative growth of 10.8% between 2004 and 2007.
No. 2: Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, Texas
No. 1: Austin-Round Rock, Texas
Read the full story written by
Forbes Top Ten Cities Where Americans Are Relocating
April 6, 2009
Written By Lauren Sherman from Forbes.com
Behind the Numbers
To determine the fastest-growing metro areas in the country, we used 2008 population estimates for metropolitan statistical areas with a population over 1 million, released March 19, 2009, by the U.S. Census Bureau. MSAs are geographic entities defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget for use by federal agencies in collecting, tabulating and publishing federal statistics.
We then compared the 2008 population estimates to the previous year’s data to see which areas had grown the most, percentage-wise.
No. 10: Denver, Colo.
No. 9: Atlanta, Ga.
No. 8: New Orleans, La.
No. 7: Houston, Texas
No. 6: San Antonio, Texas
(San Antonio metro area)
2008 Population: 2,031,445
2007-2008 Change: 2.34%
With a 6.3% unemployment rate, San Antonio’s job market is faring better when compared with the country overall. The metro area’s success has a lot to do with its sizable health care and oil companies, including Valero Energy and Tesoro Petroleum.
No. 5: Dallas, Texas
No. 4: Phoenix, Ariz.
No. 3: Charlotte, N.C.
No. 2: Austin, Texas
No. 1: Raleigh, N.C.
To read the entire article visit Forbes.com
Texas Tops List For No. 1 Relocation Destination In U.S.
January 15, 2009
Texas may be well known for its tasty barbeque, rowdy cowboys and friendly nature, but it also boasts a solid employment base, low tax rates and some of the nation’s most affordable housing. And in these challenging economic times, those qualities can look particularly attractive to families and businesses looking to move to a place where they can plant some roots. So it’s no surprise that more people chose to relocate to Texas in 2008 than any other state, according to Allied Van Lines’ 41st Annual Magnet States Report.
For the fourth year in a row, Texas took the lead as the No. 1 destination state in 2008 based on Allied’s report, which tracks U.S. migration patterns.
Texas achieved the highest net relocation gain (inbound moves minus outbound moves performed by Allied Van Lines) of 1,903 in 2008. Also for the fourth year in a row, North Carolina placed second on the list with a net relocation gain of 800, followed by Virginia in third place with a gain of 398.
Colorado and Oregon placed fourth and fifth respectively for states with the largest net relocation gains.
“Texas truly offers such a wide range of activities for its residents,” said David King, general manager of Berger Transfer and Storage in Houston, Texas, and Allied Van Lines’ largest booking and hauling agent. Berger has 17 locations nationwide with four locations in Texas (Austin, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio). King added, “It makes a lot of sense that we moved more people here than anywhere in the U.S. in the last several years. More retirees are relocating here, especially to San Antonio and The Hill Country. And a lot of people are moving here from the Northeast for employment opportunities, reasonably priced housing and the high quality of life.”
Texas experienced 5,891 inbound shipments and 3,988 outbound shipments by Allied, for a net relocation gain of 1,903—just slightly lower than last year’s net gain of 2,041. The Lone Star State chalked up 9,879 total shipments and ranked second behind California which had 11,400 total shipments and claimed “the most mobile state” title (the highest volume of inbound and outbound shipments by Allied Van Lines), followed by Florida in third place with 8,692 total shipments.
“It’s easy to see why Allied Van Lines moved so many people here,” said Bill Hammond, president and CEO of the Texas Association of Business. “We have no state income tax and continue to maintain low taxes, which is especially attractive to businesses. That, in turn, creates more jobs here. Add to that affordable housing and an overall great quality of life and there’s no question why Texas is so appealing.”
Brooke Hunt, chairman of the Texas Association of REALTORS?, agrees that moderate housing prices attract more people to Texas and said several other factors contribute to the state’s charm.
“Not only is our housing affordable, we also enjoy quality construction and can buy more for our money in Texas,” Hunt said. “In addition to drawing homeowners with great real estate, our public school systems rival the quality of many private schools and the business climate here is excellent. Our Legislature also works very hard to maintain low taxes, low unemployment rates and an outstanding business environment.”
Outbound States
The largest net relocation losses (more outbound than inbound shipments) were experienced by Michigan, followed by Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Illinois. Auto industry difficulties most likely continued to negatively affect relocations to Michigan in 2008, as Allied Van Lines’ outbound shipments of 2,388 were about double its inbound shipments of 1,181 for the state. Pennsylvania experienced the second largest net relocation loss with 855 more outbound than inbound moves, closely followed by New Jersey with a net relocation loss of 738, and Illinois with 551.
Forbes Where The Price Of Everyday Items Are The Cheapest and Priciest
November 15, 2008
Interesting article written by Lauren Sherman over at Forbes.com. As you can see San Antonio does rank the cheapest for several categories. One category I would have like to see is Gas? I just filled up yesterday at $1.87 a gallon and haven’t smiled like that at the gas pump in a long time. According AAA Texas that is the lowest it’s been since 2007.
Monthly Rent
Cheapest: Charlotte, N.C.
$666
Priciest: New York, N.Y.
$3,500 (Now I know why my cousin moved back from NY)
Monthly Home Mortgage
Cheapest: Dallas, Texas
$967 (Looking for a house in San Antonio? Contact Me)
Priciest: New York, N.Y.
$5,831
Monthly Energy Expenses
Cheapest: Seattle, Wash.
$119
Priciest: New York, N.Y.
$362.28
Monthly Landline Bill
Cheapest: Los Angeles, Calif.
$19
Priciest: Boston, Mass.
$38.45 (Who still has landline?)
Half-Gallon of Milk
Cheapest: Cincinnati, Ohio
$1.67
Priciest: Sacramento, Calif.
$2.97 (Don’t you hate it when someone drinks all the milk then leaves the container in the fridge empty, throw it away!)
Head of Lettuce
Cheapest: San Antonio, Texas
$.93
Priciest: New York, N.Y.
$1.99
Loaf of Bread
Cheapest: San Antonio, Texas
$.79 (I can swear it said $.99 at H-E-B)
Priciest: New York, N.Y.
$2.68
11.5 oz. Can of Coffee
Cheapest: San Antonio, Texas
$3.08 (Starbucks anyone?)
Priciest: San Francisco, Calif.
$5.91
Pair of Boys’ Jeans
Cheapest: Indianapolis, Ind.
$13.97
Priciest: Boston, Mass.
$37.19 (I wish my jeans costs $37 bucks)
Men’s Haircut
Cheapest: Indianapolis, Ind.
$9.20
Priciest: St. Paul, Minn.
$24.40 (I love $11 dollar Tuesdays!)
*Each urban area includes every zip code that falls under the city’s name, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
As the economy continues its decline, those in San Antonio are far less likely to feel the pinch–at least when it comes to food prices. Residents there pay just $3.08 for an 11.5 oz. can of freeze-dried coffee, compared to $5.91 in San Francisco. And when it comes to bread, San Antonians win again: The average cost of a loaf of white bread is just $.79. In Manhattan, bread costs over three times that amount, at $2.68 per loaf.
Behind The Numbers
To determine the cities where everyday costs are the cheapest and most expensive, we turned to Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER), an Arlington, Va.-based organization that works with local government and research groups to determine the costs of common goods in metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) across the country. C2ER provided the average price of 10 different everyday costs in the urban areas of the top 40 largest MSAs in the third quarter of 2008.
An urban area is defined as an area of 50,000 or more people within an MSA. That means “satellite cities”–smaller cities within the MSA–are separated from the larger cities in this survey. Take Boston. Although a small city like Quincy, Mass. is a part of Boston’s MSA, itwas considered a separate city when compiling this research. Only Boston proper–which boasts an estimated 2008 population of 616,535–was included in the information offered about “Boston.” Places like Brookline and Cambridge, which are also part of the overall Boston MSA, were not included.
San Antonio and Austin Lead Forbes List For America’s Best-Value Cities
October 11, 2008
If your looking to get the best value for your dollar, Forbes.com recommends heading to Texas.
That’s because Austin and San Antonio lead the list of places where your money goes farthest. Residents of both enjoy affordable housing and promising prospects for job growth in coming years. Houston and Dallas also land in the top 10, at Nos. 4 and 7, respectively.
“Texas, as a whole, is one of the few economies that’s performing extremely well because of the energy and technology sectors,” says Andrew Gledhill, an economist at Moody’s Economy.com. Plus, he added, military bases in San Antonio have continued to draw a steady steam of personnel and federal employees to the city, spurring widespread job growth.
America’s Best-Value Cities
10. Portland, Ore.
9. Denver, Colo.
8. Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minn.
7. Dallas, Texas
6. Columbus, Ohio
5. Charlotte, N.C.
4. Houston, Texas
3. Indianapolis, Ind.
2. San Antonio, Texas
Job Growth Projections Rank: 4
Inflation Rank: 17
Median House Price/Median Household Income Rank: 7
Median Income/Cost of Living Index Rank: 12
Gas Prices Rank: 4
1. Austin, Texas
Behind the Numbers
To ensure that our list reflected future value instead of past bargains, we began by looking at projected job growth through 2012 in the 40 largest U.S.-Census-defined metropolitan areas of the country with data from Moody’s Economy.com.
Texan cities were a clear winner, with economists predicting job growth of at least 2% by 2012 in Austin, San Antonio, Dallas and Houston. By comparison, job growth in cities at the bottom of our list, including Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Cleveland, is expected to be about 0.2%.
We then calculated the ratios between each city’s median house price and median household income, using 2000 U.S. Census figures, the latest available, and 2007 data from the National Association of Realtors. Next, we compared median income to Moody’s cost of living index.
Final factors included the average gas price in each city on a given day in October as collected by AAA, and year-over-year inflation growth as calculated by Moody’s and Forbes.com.
Read the entire article written by Abha Bhattarai at Forbes.com
