We’ve now had almost three steady years of employment growth in the country. Part of the reason the “Great Recession” became so severe was that the housing bubble had allocated so many capital resources into an industry- Mortgage lending – that provided no corresponding productive capacity back into the ecomomy. It has taken four years to start to see it revive to a level where there might be some semblance of equilibrium.
You may recall a prior post which discussed previous banking crises and how we may still be a couple years out from getting back to a true stabilized level for housing lending. The 1987 S&L Crises took almost seven years for us to finally clear away the wreckage, my guess is we’ll see a similar reult this time.
Having said that here is a good article on what segments of the economy saw job growth in 2012! Business and Professional Services was the leading category, which of course bodes well for commercial real estate agents and Landlords who hope to work with Office tenants.
While Business and Professional Services was the top category for the year, the fastest growing category was Eating and Drinking places. Many Americans have a vison of being the owner of their personal small “hospitality” operation, and 2012 saw many folks step out and give it a try. Restuarant sales across the country also increased for the third consecutive year. Very likely we’ll see similar trends in 2013.
Russell Brent, owner of Mill Creek Pub at Gardner Center – which opened in November 2011, has reported to me that sales have exceeded his expectations, and that Battle Ground has been a very supportive community. We interviewed Russell last year on our Commercial Real Estate West radio show. Check him out here , or head on out and see him in person. The food is great. Support our local hospitality industry.
