Phoenix Again Leads Nation in Job Growth

Phoenix again leads nation in job growth
from the Phoenix Business Journal, reports that the Phoenix area again nabs the top spot for employment growth among the nation's largest cities. In metropolitan markets with a work force of more than 1 million, the Phoenix metro area retained the top position in nonagricultural employment growth for December 2006 over December 2005, according to the Blue Chip Job Growth Update. The region posted a 4.8 percent gain, representing 88,800 jobs, according to the monthly report produced at the L. William Seidman Research Institute in the W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University.


West Valley housing boom to continue, economist says
from the Arizona Republic, reports that while people should expect to see slower growth in 2007, the West Valley's population and housing boom will continue through the coming decades, local economist Elliott Pollack said yesterday at the annual Westmarc economic forecast luncheon. Pollack pointed out that 44 percent of the Valley's population is expected to live in the West Valley by 2020. In addition, about 58 percent of the Valley's housing units built are expected to be located in the West Valley in the next decade, he said. According to the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG), Avondale and Goodyear growth spurt is just starting and will continue for the next several decades. Buckeye and Surprise can expect huge population surges. Glendale and El Mirage will continue to grow but will reach build-out sometime in the next decade. Pollack also touched on the Valley's housing market slowdown, saying that the worse things get this year, the quicker the market will recover. You can see Elliott Pollack's power point presentation on his web site at www.elliottpollack.com.

S&P says Phoenix Home Prices up 1.8%
The latest S&P/Case-Shiller home-prices indexes show continued year-over-year gains as of November in the Phoenix/Mesa region, with local appreciation running ahead of two national measures tracked by these same people. These indexes are used to set commodity trading prices in housing prices on the Chicago Merc. (For more details on this Phoenix price index, CLICK HERE.)

United Van Lines 2006 Migration Study - " While still a high-inbound state, Arizona (55.4%) saw roughly 5% less people move in than last year." See the whole report "Americans Head West, Southeast; Say 'Goodbye' to Central Northeast Region' HERE

Now read: Real Estate Still Working

Housing Bubble and Real Estate Market Tracker from SA