Arizona Economy on the rise... (Phoenix, Chandler: credit, hotel, new home)

[Ponderosa]

I too have noticed a huge increase in the number of "I'm moving to Arizona" posts this year. Some of it is probably just that there are more forum members than ever, but weather and economy is also driving some of it. One thing that stands out from past years is how many people are coming here and planning to BUY rather than rent. Last year it was all renters. This year buying something seems to be the main idea. That is certainly a positive and comes from a recognition that it has not been this good for buyers in decades, if ever.

Low housing costs are what fueled growth here for so many years. They are back - in spades - and a new boom can't be far off.

[kdog]

Originally Posted by lakepowellman

Yeah there are jobs in Phoenix and there are plenty of them if you want to work at Home Depot or Discount Cab.

Economy here in Phoenix is not improving at all. The jobs that are opening are crappy jobs like working in retail for a few cents over minimum wage or driving a cab and risking your life.

Don't believe the Snake Oil Salesmen you see on here saying the economy here in PHX is getting better. These Snake Oil Salesmen are only trying to make PHX look better than it really is.

There are currently 3651 job openings in Phoenix listed on Monster.com in every industry, discipline and career level imaginable. How can you possibly say there are no jobs? Of course those are generally listings are for people with careers. What's yours?

[khuntrevor]

Home Depot has 8500 employees in Az, making it one of the largest private employers. IMO, those folks are two steps ahead of the Wal-Mart crowd. They are selling durable goods, too. A lot of their goods would also have a large multiplier effect on the economy.

[Ritchie_az]

Originally Posted by lakepowellman

Yeah there are jobs in Phoenix and there are plenty of them if you want to work at Home Depot or Discount Cab.

Economy here in Phoenix is not improving at all. The jobs that are opening are crappy jobs like working in retail for a few cents over minimum wage or driving a cab and risking your life.

Don't believe the Snake Oil Salesmen you see on here saying the economy here in PHX is getting better. These Snake Oil Salesmen are only trying to make PHX look better than it really is.

There are 5,431 job ads posted on azcentral.com's classifieds for Phoenix metro. 45 of those are Home Depot and 10 of those are Discount Cab. That means 5,376 job postings are for companies other than the two you mentioned.
Besides, as HX_Guy and khuntrevor mentioned, there are poeple who will be quite happy to land those 55 jobs....

[YAZ]

Originally Posted by lakepowellman

Yeah there are jobs in Phoenix and there are plenty of them if you want to work at Home Depot or Discount Cab.

Economy here in Phoenix is not improving at all. The jobs that are opening are crappy jobs like working in retail for a few cents over minimum wage or driving a cab and risking your life.

Don't believe the Snake Oil Salesmen you see on here saying the economy here in PHX is getting better. These Snake Oil Salesmen are only trying to make PHX look better than it really is.

Skilled manufacturing jobs pay a tad more than minimum wage.....

[MN-Born-n-Raised]

Originally Posted by Ritchie_az

There are 5,431 job ads posted on azcentral.com's classifieds for Phoenix metro. 45 of those are Home Depot and 10 of those are Discount Cab. That means 5,376 job postings are for companies other than the two you mentioned.
Besides, as HX_Guy and khuntrevor mentioned, there are poeple who will be quite happy to land those 55 jobs....

The reality is that good people figure out a way to find work. Remember, 90% of the people still have jobs. At this point, the people who are not spending and still have jobs are either nervous or they are paying down their debt.

I'm excluding construction folks in the mix. There are not enough jobs to absorb the people in the trades but certainly the better ones are still working (albeit for less $$'s).

I was in AZ a week ago. The restaurants were packed and the shopping carts were full of widgets. The reality is that people need to dig and find the motivation to stay positive and network or they will remain unemployed. Statistically, the 10% that is still unemployed are not as qualified. Good people to get the hook but in they do land back on their feet. That's not everyone (I'm specifically talking about averages) but if you are unemployed for 3 years it's time to look in the mirror.

[Ponderosa]

Need more evidence that the economy is improving? Sales taxes receipts up for the first time in January since 2006:

Phoenix racks up 12.5% hike in sales-tax revenues over holidays

[las vegas drunk]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

Need more evidence that the economy is improving? Sales taxes receipts up for the first time in January since 2006:

Phoenix racks up 12.5% hike in sales-tax revenues over holidays

LOL, look at the comments on your article. The taxes were raised since last year. This is ridiculous to use as evidence the economy is improving.

"so you raise sales taxes by 18% and see a 12.5% gain. Wow, nice job Arizona."

[HX_Guy]

Uhh...what do STATE sales taxes have to do with CITY of Phoenix sales taxes? They are two different things and Phoenix did not benefit from the 1% sales tax increase.

The City of Phoenix did have it's own new tax on groceries of 0.2% but if you read the article, it breaks down where the increases came from and they weren't from groceries.

[kdog]

Um, you missed the follow-on comment, LVD.

"yes STATE sales taxes were raised a total of 1% for every $1. That money has no effect on the revenue gained by cities with the CITY sales taxes. Keep reading, and try paying closer attention"