Texas market news, May 2012
May 31, 2012
It’s now a seller’s market in Central TexasThe Central Texas housing market has turned in sellers’ favor, with homes going to the swift, multiple offers making a comeback, and prices creeping higher, local experts say. Home sales activity increased for the 11th straight month, jumping 16% compared to April 2011, and the median price increased 9% to $212,000. Read more at the Austin American-Statesman.
May 31, 2012
Hays County gained nearly 1,000 jobs in first quarterAccording to Texas Workforce Commission data, Hays County added 970 jobs in the first quarter of the calendar year and experienced an unemployment rate drop to 5.8% in March, the lowest since April 2009. Unemployment in Hays County and its two largest cities, San Marcos and Kyle, continues to be substantially lower than the state as a whole, which stood at 7% in March. Read more at the San Marcos Mercury.
May 30, 2012
San Antonio’s construction sector continues to see employment gainsIn its latest survey, the Associated General Contractors of America found that the San Antonio/New Braunfels metro area saw a 7% increase in construction employment between March 2011 and March 2012. Read more at the San Antonio Business Journal.
May 30, 2012
U.S. immigration from Mexico dwindlesA recent study from the Pew Hispanic Center indicates that net migration from Mexico has fallen to zero and may actually be negative, meaning that more people are leaving the United States and going to Mexico than those entering the U.S. Read more at the San Antonio Business Journal.
May 29, 2012
Houston hospitality jobs on the riseHouston ranks third in the nation in hospitality jobs added, with an increase of 19,000 over the past four years, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. The bureau reported an 8.3% increase in jobs in Houston’s hotel, restaurant, entertainment, and arts sectors. Read more at the Houston Business Journal.
May 29, 2012
Texas adds most government jobs in U.S. over 10 yearsA new report from The Business Journals’ On Numbers finds that Texas has added the most government jobs of any state over the past 10 years. In the last year alone, the Texas added 164,400 government jobs. Read more at the Houston Business Journal.
May 25, 2012
Texas No. 1 for private sector job growth over past decadeThe Business Journals’s On Numbers reports that Texas led the nation in the creation of private sector jobs in the last 10 years, adding 1.15 million jobs during that time. Texas was one of seven states that produced more than 100,000 jobs over the last decade. Read more at the Austin Business Journal.
May 25, 2012
Texas named top state for commercial real estate developmentTexas ranked first in the nation in the development and construction of office, industrial, and retail space in 2011, according to a report issued by the NAIOP Research Foundation. Read more at the Austin Business Journal.
May 24, 2012
Austin No. 17 in nation for college-educated young adultsAccording to the U.S. Census Bureau, more than 28% of Austin’s 18-to-34-year-olds hold bachelor’s degrees, putting the city at No. 17 on a list of college education rates for young adults in the nation’s 100 biggest metro areas. Read more at the Austin Business Journal.
May 23, 2012
Despite job growth, Texas’s unemployment numbers on riseAccording to The Business Journals’ On the Numbers analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data, Texas ranks No. 5 in the nation for number of unemployed workers. Read more at the Houston Business Journal.
May 22, 2012
Slow growth in April for Texas manufacturersTexas’s manufacturing activity saw growth in April but at a slower pace than the month before, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas’ Texas Manufacturing Outlook survey. The report shows a production index of 5.6%, down from 11.1% in March. Read more at the Austin Business Journal.
May 21, 2012
More Americans move to Austin, out of suburbsAustin tops the list of cities most attractive to migration, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The data also show a trend of residents moving inward from the suburbs and into the city. Read more at AG Beat.
May 18, 2012
Tyler area employment rate climbsThe latest figures by the Texas Workforce Commission show that employment in the Tyler area rose to 92.5% between March 2011 and 2012. This rate falls slightly under the state’s overall climb to 93% during the same time frame. Read more at CBS 19.
May 18, 2012
Midland-Odessa regional economy sees first-quarter growthThe Midland-Odessa Regional Economic Index rose 17.7% between March 2011 and March 2012. According to economic experts, the economic expansion in the Permian Basin continued through the end of the first quarter, thanks to booming oil and gas production in the region. Read more at the Odessa American.
May 17, 2012
Texas construction industry posts job gains, losses in MarchThe Lone Star State continues to gain construction jobs, according to a monthly report by the Associated General Contractors of America. Read more at the San Antonio Business Journal.
May 17, 2012
Texas economy maintaining robust growthComerica Bank’s Texas Economic Activity index moved up two points in February to 96, the economy’s highest ranking level since October 2008. Read more at the Austin Business Journal.
May 16, 2012
Texas cities rank low on public transit listWalk Score’s Transit Score index, which measures how well a location is served by public transportation, listed all four of Texas’s major cities at the bottom of a ranking of 25 major U.S. cities’ public transit systems. Read more at the Austin Business Journal.
May 16, 2012
Houston down 7,200 manufacturing jobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows that Houston lost 7,200 manufacturing jobs between February 2008 and February 2012. This loss is part of a national trend in which 100 markets lost more than 1 million manufacturing jobs were lost in the last four years. Read more at the Houston Business Journal.
May 15, 2012
Houston, Austin adds most jobs since beginning of recessionHouston and Austin are the top two markets nationwide for private-sector jobs added between February 2008 and February 2012, a new On Numbers report shows. Read more at the Houston Business Journal.
May 15, 2012
Midland boasts lowest unemployment in state in FebruaryMidland now has the lowest unemployment rate in the state, according to the Texas Workforce Commission. The city’s 3.7% jobless rate is seconded by Odessa’s unemployment rate of 4.4%. Read more at the Midland Reporter-Telegram.
May 14, 2012
Dallas-Fort Worth leads nation in financial sector jobsAn analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data by The Business Journals’ On Numbers shows that the Dallas-Fort worth area created the most financial sector jobs in the U.S., with 7,600 jobs created between February 2008 and 2012. Read more at the Houston Business Journal.
May 14, 2012
Texas cities among most-visited for business travelHouston and Dallas are the No. 6 and No. 10 cities in the U.S. for business travel, according to a new report from Concur Technologies. Read more at the Houston Business Journal.
May 11, 2012
Texas a top state for new IPOsA recent Ernst & Young analysis states that Texas had the second-most initial public offerings in the pipeline in the first quarter of 2012, with 20 companies seeking $6.2 billion. Nationally, there were 164 IPOs with $32 billion in filings registered at the end of the first quarter. Read more at the Austin Business Journal.
May 11, 2012
Survey: Small businesses slow to hire in 2012According to a recent survey, small businesses aren’t hiring as much as planned so far this year, thanks to high gas prices, concerns over health care costs, and credit-access challenges. Read more at the Austin Business Journal.
May 10, 2012
Boomers to revolutionize ‘senior’ locationAccording to a MetLife Mature Market Institute survey, 83% of baby boomers said they have no plans to move from their current home when they retire. Only 11% said they plan to retire in an active adult community, signaling that senior housing communities will decline and future housing developments will need to be designed with multiple generations in mind. Read more at the Real Estate Center.
May 10, 2012
Economist: Lack of affordable housing in Austin could affect relocating firmsEconomist Jon Hockenyos reports that the lack of affordable housing could have a negative impact on the number of companies wanting to relocate to Austin. If the market continues to shrink, firms may think twice before moving to Texas capital. Read more at the Austin Business Journal.
May 9, 2012
Texas banks score high marks in J.D. Power studyTexas is one of the top regions in J.D. Power and Associates’ 2012 U.S. Retail Banking Satisfaction Study, scoring an overall satisfaction index of 765 out of 1,000. Texas’s No. 1 ranked bank, Frost National Bank, has the highest score across the study overall. Read more at the Austin Business Journal.
May 9, 2012
Texas No. 10 in U.S. for clean energy job creationA report from Environmental Entrepreneurs showed that Texas ranks No. 10 for clean energy jobs planned in the first quarter of 2012, with 1,681 jobs and six clean energy projects announced during that time. Read more at the Austin Business Journal.
May 8, 2012
Report: Texas’s higher ed policy puts economy at riskA new report from the University of Pennsylvania’s Institute for Research on Higher Education found that Texas does not have a clear set of priorities for the future of developing higher education standards. Without these standards, Texas could harm future economic growth because it might not have enough educated workers to fill employers’ demands. Read more at the Houston Business Journal.
May 8, 2012
Texas comptroller sees reasons to be confident, cautious about state economyTexas Comptroller Susan Combs says that while the Texas economy continues to do well, lagging single-family housing permits and possible forced cuts to public education budgets cast a shadow on the economy’s future growth. Read more at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
May 7, 2012
Austin is best U.S. city for small businessesFor the third year in a row, On Numbers ranked Austin as the No. 1 city in the Southern U.S. and in the nation overall for small businesses. Read more at the Austin Business Journal.
May 7, 2012
Firm: Austin to help drive global growth through 2025A McKinsey Global Institute report said Austin will join larger cities like New York and Los Angeles to drive more than 10% of global growth through 2025. Austin has outperformed the rest of the nation in reaching above-average population gains and per-capita economic growth, the report said. Read more at the Austin Business Journal.
May 4, 2012
Texas cities lead U.S. for online fraudIn a new study released by ThreatMetrix, three of Texas’s major cities ranked in the top 25 worst cities for fraudulent online transactions. Dallas and Houston ranked as the sixth and eighth worst spots, and San Antonio came in at No. 24. Read more at the San Antonio Business Journal.
May 4, 2012
Gender pay gap slightly better in Texas than nationally, group reportsAccording to a report by the National Partnership for Women & Families, women workers in Texas are paid 80 cents for every dollar a man earns, which is better than the national average of 77 cents per dollar earned by a man. Read more at the Dallas Business Journal.
May 3, 2012
Texas ranks at No. 21 in nation for CEO payChief executive officers in Texas are paid an average of $178,560, ranking the state No. 21 in the U.S., according to May 2011 data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Read more at the Dallas Business Journal.
May 3, 2012
Is Austin Texas’s newest oil and gas hub?Increased oil and gas production in the Lone Star State has led to a sharp increase the number of oil and gas companies opening Austin offices in the last 24 months. Industry observers attribute Austin’s attraction to the city’s abundant technology resources. Read more at the Austin Business Journal.
May 2, 2012
Texas economic recovery “more solid,” report saysThe latest Monthly Review of the Texas Economy by the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University showed employment numbers that put the state in a “more solid” economic recovery. According to the review, Texas’s nonagricultural jobs grew 2.6%, or 266,200 jobs, since last February, with big gains in the construction and mining and logging industries in particular. Read more at the San Antonio Express-News.
May 2, 2012
Houston’s average hourly wage higher than U.S. averageAccording to new data from the Dallas office of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, average wages in the Houston metropolitan region are above the national average, as are average wages for nine of the region’s 22 major occupational groups. Houston’s average wage of $22.83 per hour in May 2011 was 5% higher than its national counterpart. Read more at the Houston Business Journal.
May 1, 2012
Shortage of skilled trade workers could hit TexasAt a recent Senate Committee on Business and Commerce hearing, employers and workforce experts warned of a shortage of skilled trade workers throughout Texas. While there are an estimated 325,000 job postings in the state and an average four job seekers for every posting, too few applicants are qualified for jobs that require special skills but not a four-year college education. Read more at the Austin American-Statesman.
May 1, 2012
Oil-and gas-activity uptick drives higher sales-tax revenues throughout TexasTexas sales-tax revenue rose to $1.87 billion in March, up 16.9% from March 2011, according to Comptroller Susan Combs. This pattern repeated throughout Texas, with Austin and Houston sales tax revenues increasing 17% and 14% since last year. Combs attributes this uptick to the booming oil and gas industry throughout the state. Read more at the Austin Business Journal.
Residential listings from Texas REALTORS® across the state.
