Northern Indiana economy (Gary, Elkhart, Richmond: home, find a job, buy)

[cdr18]

Ok, I am from Elkhart County. I just wanted to get your guy's opinions on the overall economy here in Northern Indiana. I know for one, that people are starting to hire once again, I have seen with the traffic, people I know who have been recently hired, and also the number of plants that are no longer vacant. However, I realize that it might be different elsewhere because this area saw such a devastating blow due to the recession. I guess my question is: do you guys think the economy is starting to pick up? How have you noticed differences since last summer.

Granted, I know everything is not even close to what it is used to be, but overall I am getting a sense of optimism rather than afraid your job is going to be gone in a couple of months. I feel like as citizens we need to be optimistic, because let's face it, the last couple of years have been a living hell for most of us.

Any suggestions or comments are encouraged.

[WayneCo]

yeah I think things are starting to come around, but we still have a long way to go... I'm from East-Central Indiana, Richmond to be exact and it still is struggling.. but I hope things will continue to get better.

WayneCo

[cdr18]

Ya, well what they say around here is we are the first to feel the effects of a recession and the first to walk out of the recession. That may be a reason for the difference.

[richb]

The economy has been slow the last couple of years and could be better, but it could be far worse. Like it is in Michigan, Ohio and Illinois. Indiana's economy, including the northern part of the state is still far better then any of those states. So if one is out of work, Indiana is likely the best place to look for and to find a job at the moment.

[fallingwater]

Sometimes you would never know anything is wrong if you drive by the UP mall. Best Buy parking lot seems packed every weekend.

[cdr18]

Haha so true. The UP mall is always busy! However, drive three miles to the south on Grape road, you'll notice a little bit

[PhillytoCincy]

Originally Posted by richb

The economy has been slow the last couple of years and could be better, but it could be far worse. Like it is in Michigan, Ohio and Illinois. Indiana's economy, including the northern part of the state is still far better then any of those states. So if one is out of work, Indiana is likely the best place to look for and to find a job at the moment.

Actually, Ohio just had the fastest growing economy last month. Over 37,000 new jobs have been created. Illinois and Ohio are both home to extremely diverse economies, and don't rely on one industry like Michigan (auto industry). That is why you see the Michigan unemployment rate at 14%. Indiana's actually went up to 10% last month. Ohio's currently sits at 10.9%. With the creation of jobs, and the major projects happening in Ohio's cities, the unemployment number will continue to decline, and I wouldn't be suprised to see Ohio number one or two next month for fastest creation of jobs.

Indiana and Ohio aren't very different. You have your booming areas of the southern portions of the state, then the northern halves seem to struggle a bit, but you have that one pocket ( Elkhart, Gary, and Youngstown) that have unemployment rates equal to that of Michigan. It all goes back to being dependent on one industry.

[cdr18]

Very true. However, the difference between Elkhart County and Gary and Youngstown is that Elkhart County has grown significantly over the last couple decades. Youngstown and Gary have been declining for years now. The RV industry is somewhat different than that auto industry and steel industry because the industry as a whole is not very big. For example, think how many people work within the steel and auto industries. Thousands, if not millions. The RV industry, while it is very significant in Elkhart and Lagrange counties, it is not very prevalent elsewhere besides parts of Oregon. Therefore, it bounces back quickly and Elkhart regains many of its workers again. With that said, Ohio and Indiana are very similar and I do see your point. However, I thought Indiana was the number one state for job creation in the nation? I may be wrong.

[PhillytoCincy]

Actually Youngstown's steel industry is taking off like never before. The great thing now is it is leaning towards advanced technology. Youngstown has a great university right downtown, a beautifully restored downtown, the new tech businesses that are coming in left and right. Youngstown has a great metro park system and booming suburbs. Trust me, I have been to both Elkhart and Youngstown, there isn't too much of a differance in the metro areas. Unemployment numbers say this too; Elkharts are slightly higher.

Gary is just a lost cause.

I don't know where you got the stats, but Ohio was number one in the nation. Indiana and Ohio are doing pretty well though through this recession, and I continue to see new businesses and companies moving in. Not to mention construction is booming; at least here in Ohio.

http://www.dispatchpolitics.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2010/05/22/copy/ohio-sees-record-job-growth-in-april.html?adsec=politics&sid=101 (broken link)

[cdr18]

I think I see the reason why we both think that Ohio and Indiana led the nation in job growth. Your article is correct, when it comes to the number of jobs the state has added. The article I read puts it in a different perspective. They factor in the population, which once everything is calculated, Indiana boasts the highest job growth in terms of percent. This would make sense, considering Ohio has a larger population than Indiana. Regardless, we both have reason to be happy for our respective areas.

Indiana Leads Nation in Job Growth - Newsroom - Inside INdiana Business with Gerry Dick

I guess I wasn't aware of the booming steel industry in Youngstown. I can't really speak about that city, considering I have never been there. I just go with what articles say to back up my claim, which clearly isn't the most logical thing to do.