NM unemployment Rate Lowest Ever ! (Albuquerque, Las Cruces: mortgage, loan, home)

[Six Foot Three]

NM Business Weekly reported today that the NM unemployment rate for june is 3.2% which is the lowest ever on record. That puts us tied for 7th with Nebraska. The lowest is Hawaii and Montana at 2.4% and the highest is Michigan at 7.2%.

[cheekymonkey]

Normally, I don't place a whole lot of credence in statistics, but that's encouraging news, Harry.

I have been living in East Texas for the last 7 years, and looking at the possibility of moving to N.M. Tyler has a population of over 100,000, but our local employment picture is MUCH worse than officially reported. (Not to mention the fact that if you're not one of the "good ol' boys", it's difficult to get hired!) And the REALLY LOW wage scale sucks!

Do you know if Las Cruces is large enough to support a decent job base? I'm sure Albuquerque would be better in that department, due to its size, but I prefer a smaller city, if possible. Also, Las Cruces has some proximity to El Paso, although it might be a little too far for a comfortable commute, right?

[Six Foot Three]

Originally Posted by cheekymonkey

Do you know if Las Cruces is large enough to support a decent job base?

I think so...Its pop is around 80,000 and its MSA is around 150,000 pop and its growing pretty fast with new construction all over the city. The last several years its been featured in Forbes magazine for business growth and expansion. Its also featured in alot of retiree magazines and has great year around weather even playing golf or mountain hiking/biking in he winter months. Only those who hate dry heat will not like the weather. Also the new Spaceport is being built just north of it and will start launching space tourists (virgin galactic) in 2010. Thats also spurring new manufactering companies moving there to build the different components of the rockets etc...Also has NMSU University which is going thru expansion with new buildings and growth in students (18,000 pop ?).

So since you enquired about Las Cruces those are my observations of its economics but others can give their input one or the other also.......

[mmarquez2]

Yes but what about the poverty levels and unreported unemployment levels in rural areas? I see 200 people a week in shelters in Farmington???

[Zoidberg]

Unemployment is an official measure of people who want work and don't have it. People who don't seek work (or seek state unemployment) don't figure into the number.

The missing numbers include those underage, those who are elderly, college students, the disabled, those who have "given up", the wealthy nonworkers, and those who work off the radar (construction, drug dealing, etc.)

A low unemployment number is more likely to entice those who don't figure in to rejoin the measured workforce.

Low unemployment is a double-edged sword. People off the unemployment rolls sounds like a good thing. Labor shortages can result too, resulting in doofuses who don't understand English standing between you and your order. Higher wages from low employment help wage earners but raise prices for everybody.

[cheekymonkey]

Originally Posted by harry o

I think so...Its pop is around 80,000 and its MSA is around 150,000 pop and its growing pretty fast with new construction all over the city. The last several years its been featured in Forbes magazine for business growth and expansion. Its also featured in alot of retiree magazines and has great year around weather even playing golf or mountain hiking/biking in he winter months. Only those who hate dry heat will not like the weather. Also the new Spaceport is being built just north of it and will start launching space tourists (virgin galactic) in 2010. Thats also spurring new manufactering companies moving there to build the different components of the rockets etc...Also has NMSU University which is going thru expansion with new buildings and growth in students (18,000 pop ?).

So since you enquired about Las Cruces those are my observations of its economics but others can give their input one or the other also.......

Thanks, Harry. I'll hopefully get a chance to scope out Las Cruces soon. In my opinion, L.C. is a very nice part of the country. The dry heat is o.k., because at 4,000' altitude, it cools off nicely once the sun goes down.

[Chynna]

All I have to say is your safe if you don’t live in Michigan you can’t possibly even comprehend what I see every day. I moved here from Albuquerque and I thought I was one of those people that could get a job any where and not be affected by a rate. I was so blessed to find a job within two weeks, but I applied at over 40 places and I am qualified. I got ONE call back, before I moved I had not even handed out an application I just screwed around with the monster website for job seeking and I had over 5 hits in about seven days. Granted one was crap but the other four were legit. This mind you is in Albuquerque. I make 2 dollars less here in Michigan then what I made in Albuquerque and my fiancé has been unemployed twice already. I have only lived here for 11 months. I hate Michigan and as sad as it is, I wouldn’t recommend any one living here it’s a death trap I have never struggled so much in my life. I am moving back to Albuquerque in October and I have a couple interviews already set up. I am not trying to boast I just want people to understand the devastation here. Yes its manageable and I have been unbelievably blesses but I am sitting at my desk and I look out the front window across the street I have seen about 6 or more companies close up and leave and again this is in about 9 to 10 months. It’s like this everywhere there are tons of vacant commercial buildings and I have no idea why but they seem to keep building more commercial buildings in the same area and those building are also 80% vacant. I can not wait to move back to Albuquerque and I can tell you that the majority of people here are blaming this problem on the motor industry. People were making really good money with usually nothing but a high school diploma and then all of a sudden this job is pulled out from under them, and they don’t know how to do anything else and they have a lifestyle they cant pay for anymore and so goes the cycle. Anyway I am actually surprised to hear that Albuquerque has a high rate though I think nothing is as bad as what’s happening here.

[yukon]

Chynna, what you describe in Michigan is why I wish ABQ would focus more efforts on promoting small business development, and move away from any dependence on Sandia Labs, the base, and Intel. All it takes is one budget cut to close Sandia; one annoyed senator to put the base on the base closure list; and hasn't Intel laid people off already? ABQ ranked 52 on the latest list of cities best for small biz, and they really should try to polevault higher on that list. I've lived in many cities, all sizes, and the ones that manage to survive tough economic downturns have always been the ones with a healthy, good sized small biz base.

However, thanks for your post about your job hunts in ABQ - I found them very reassuring!

[Zoidberg]

As a small business owner, I find one of the largest barriers to success in this state is banking/lending. Many have heard the story of Bill Gates trying to get a loan here back when MSFT was a small business.

By and large, my experience is that banks haven't learned. The two nonprofit "community lenders" are woefully underfunded, and the rest of the banking industry could care less unless a home or car mortgage is involved.

[Vesper]

I would like to add my two cents

I have been a facility manager for over 6 yrs now and I think fairly employable. Most of the work available seems to be nursing, sales, domestics and call centers.

This is culture shock of a type for me in that I have never seen the "service" industries dominate an area like this before. Is it due to the base and casinos?

After about two solid weeks of hard looking, (and I would be willing to work other positions than management for a decent wage) I have an interview for a retail management position. Hopefully it will work out, I love this area