Check out the latest studies from the Haas Center.
 

Northwest Florida Employment
by Michael Scheibe, MBA
The unemployment rate for the Northwest Florida region in the fourth quarter of 2009 was 2.9 percent higher than it was in the fourth quarter of 2008. The unemployment rate identifies the percentage of people in the labor force that are seeking a job but do not have one. The labor force is the sum of those employed and unemployed, but it does not include the jobless who are not seeking employment such as full-time students and retirees. More »

Northwest Florida Real Estate Activity
by David Kane, BS
The fourth quarter of 2009 ended the year on a relatively high note for real estate activity in NW Florida.  Sales were up, substantially in some cases, across the region and across the state.  For the five-county NW Florida region as a whole, total home sales were up by an average of 27.1 percent compared to the fourth quarter of 2008.  Home re-sale activity led the charge, increasing by 29.5 percent overall from last year.  Sales of new homes were also markedly improved, up by 16.6 percent for the region. On a statewide basis this is the sixth consecutive quarter that Florida has reported higher (than the corresponding quarter of the previous year) sales of existing homes.  According to the Florida Association of Realtors survey of MLS sales data within the twenty Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSA’s) that comprise the state, sales of existing single-family homes were up by 44 percent compared to last year.  For the three MSA’s that comprise NW Florida the increase in existing home sales was 31.3 percent.  Over the same time period the median sales price of an existing single-family home declined by a statewide average of 13 percent - down to $140,000.  In the NW Florida region, however, the decline was only 5.6 percent, bringing the median sale price to $164,300, which is 17.4 percent higher than the statewide figure. More »

Housing Affordability
by Anita Remesch, BS
In the fourth quarter of 2009, housing affordability increased due to decreases in median home prices. The largest increase was felt in the Fort Walton Beach MSA (Metropolitan Statistical Area) with a 7.4 percent increase in housing affordability.  The Panama City MSA increased 5 percent and the Pensacola MSA increased 4.7percent.  On the national level, housing affordability increased 1.5 percent.    More »

Northwest Florida Retail Sales
by Michael Scheibe, MBA
The Northwest Florida region’s taxable retail sales totaled almost $4.4 billion in the third quarter of 2009, down 3.7 percent from the previous year. Despite the region as a whole being down 3.7 percent from the previous year, five counties gained. Gulf County and Jefferson County increased sales by 17.3 percent and 2.2 percent, respectively. Holmes County, Wakulla County, and Washington County increased their sales by 0.2 percent. The largest percentage decline among the 16 counties was Liberty County at -30.1 percent. The retail sales in the region are measured according to data on taxable retail sales that is collected and distributed by the Florida Department of Revenue. More »

Bed Tax Numbers
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