Items tagged with 'economy'
Consumer "non-confidence"
The higher the number, the more confident.
Check out this table from the Siena Research Institute's monthly New York State consumer confidence index.
Look at the split between Democrats and Republicans for confidence about the future of the economy. There's also a relatively wide split between upstate and NYC.
From SRI director Doug Lonnstrom:
Statewide our numbers are weak and depict worried consumers very reluctant to spend. Under the hood, we see Democrats saying the economic glass is nearly half full, but Republicans, 25 future index points lower, are now more pessimistic about their own prospects as well as the five-year state outlook than they have been since we began measuring consumer confidence in 1999. Over six of every ten Republicans expect poor business conditions in New York this year and widespread unemployment through 2015. Democrats forecast a somewhat rosier picture for the state and are much more likely than Republicans to insist that somehow, someway, they personally will be better off in a year.
As NYT reported earlier this week, New York City has fared relatively well during the recession (relative being the key word) -- and things are looking up there. That might explain some of the split -- both political and geographic.
Earlier on AOA: Optimism for the Capital Region housing market
table: Siena Research Institute
The Albany metro area is "brainy"
And as we all know, smart is sexy.
The Albany metro area is #13 on a list of the "20 Brainiest Cities in America" compiled by Richard "Creative Class" Florida (and another researcher) for the Daily Beast.
From the accompanying article:
Brainy metros tend to have higher incomes, wages, and economic output, higher levels of innovation (measured as patents), more high-tech industry, and higher housing prices, according to an analysis by my research team at the Martin Prosperity Institute. They have also been among the most resilient during the current economic downturn.
And the methodology:
The Brainiest Metros Index is based on three variables: (1) the share of adults 25 years of age and older with a Ph.D., master's or professional degree (from the U.S. Census American Community Survey), (2) computer scientists and mathematicians as a share of all employment, and (3) scientists (physical, biological, social) as a share of total metro employment (both from Bureau of Labor Statistics). The index weights all three variables equally and covers 362 U.S. metro regions.
Boulder, Colorado was #1.
(Thanks, Carl!)
Earlier on AOA:
+ Albany: not dead, yet
+ Listomania
The Radix Ecological Sustainability Center
Scott Kellogg and his daughter on the site of the future Radix Center.
Scott Kellogg wants to teach you to live greener and be more self-sustaining -- you know, grow your own food, raise a little livestock.
Hey, city dwellers -- this means you.
Kellogg and Stacy Pettigrew are the founders of the Rhizome Collective, a center for community organizing and urban sustainability in Austin Texas, and the authors of The Toolbox for Sustainable City Living.
Now they live in Albany, and they're building a space called The Radix Center to teach city dwellers and suburbanites alike to do everything from compost with worms and grow porch mushrooms, to collect rainwater and raise their own fish.
Scott says not only is this possible, you're actually going to enjoy it.
Not dead yet
Going on more than three centuries.
This whole "Albany is a dead city" thing just seems silly to us. Albany isn't dead. Unless this is some sort of Sixth Sense situation. Or maybe we're all zombies -- and Albany is actually an undead city. (What's for lunch? Braiiinnns...)
But, whatever... let's kick this around a little bit.
The local housing market is... something
Median sale prices. Just a reminder: it's one month of data, so take it with a grain of salt.
The number of closed home sales was down 38 percent in July compared the same period last year, according to Greater Capital Association of Realtors.* But get this: the median sale price was up five percent -- to $199,000 (year to date prices are up slightly, too).
The steep drop in the number of sales probably is a result of the federal tax credit that ended earlier this year -- a lot of house buying was probably crammed in before the deadline.
There are still a lot of houses out there, though. GCAR reports the market has 12.5 "months supply of inventory." And the number of days on the market for the average house is 86 -- that's up about five percent over last year.
By the way: If you already own a house -- and think you'll be there for at least a few years -- it might be a good idea to look a refinancing. Rates are extraordinarily low right (you can get a 15 year mortgage for around 4 percent). Refinancing could save you a lot of money in the long run (even with New York's high closing costs).
New York has the highest closing costs
The ten most expensive states (counting LA and SF separately). Arkansas had the lowest average costs at a little more than $3,000.
The closing costs for a $200,000 loan in New York State average $5,623, according to a survey by Bankrate. That's highest in the nation. (Yes, shock. This is New York.)
New York's average is way ahead of #2 Texas (yeah, not everything is bigger in Texas). The Lone Star State's average was $4,708 -- 16 percent less than the Empire State. In fact, New York's total was 50 percent higher than the national average. (Arkansas had the lowest at $3,007.)
Here's how Bankrate figures the costs break down in New York.
Of course, closing costs make it more expensive to buy a house -- but they also add to the price of refinancing your mortgage. And right now mortgage interest rates are at record lows. (Here are some tips for saving on refinance closing costs.)
[via Business Buzz]
graph based on figures from Bankrate
Optimism for the Capital Region housing market
positive = optimism | negative = pessimism
People in the Capital Region are optimistic about the housing market here, according to a Siena Research Institute report out this week. In fact, people are more optimistic about the housing market here over the next year than in any other part of the state.
Also, SRI reports that sentiment here is strongly leaning toward this being a buyer's market right now. That's not really surprising. The median sales price for single family homes in the Capital Region is now about the same as it was five years ago, according to the Greater Capital Region Association of Realtors. And while the "months supply of inventory" has been down recently, it's still relatively high compared to the last five years.
The strong optimism for the future is a little harder to figure. Is it a result of GlobalFoundries? Or maybe a byproduct of the fact the housing market here never really went in the tank like it did other places?
A quick explanation of the graph above: SRI surveyed more than 2,000 people to derive the "consumer real estate sentiment scores." Positive numbers indicate optimism, negative numbers pessimism. Zero is the point at which there's an equal amount of optimism and pessimism. SRI says anything beyond 50 (+ or -) is considered "both rare and extreme." (There's more detailed explanation at that first link.)
Earlier on AOA:
+ The slow climb toward economic recovery
+ Capital Region June unemployment rate better than last year
graph: Siena Research Institute
The slow climb toward economic recovery
Every week there seems to be some story about how a local county or other municipality (or, well, the state itself) is scraping for cash. The chart above, from the state comptroller's office, might shed some light on why.
The chart tracks sales tax collections for counties outside NYC over the last five years. As you can see, revenues are headed back up again -- but they're still only at the March 2007 level.
The comptroller's office reports that county sales tax collections outside NYC grew 3.7 percent during the first half of 2010 (they were down 6.9 percent during the first half of 2009). But collections in the Capital District were "essentially flat." Saratoga County did well -- its collections were up more than five percent. Albany, Schenectady and Rensselaer counties were all flat or down a bit, though.
Earlier on AOA: Capital Region June unemployment rate better than last year
chart: NYS Comptroller's Office
Capital Region June unemployment rate better than last year
The dots mark the unemployment rate for the last five Junes.
The Capital Region's unemployment rate was 6.6 percent in June, according to the state Department of Labor. It was 6.5 percent in May and 7.1 percent in June 2009. (June to June is the best comparison because the local unemployment rate is not seasonally adjusted.)
There are more than 30,000 people unemployed in the Capital Region.
New York State's overall unemployment rate in June was 8.2. The state's rate was 8.3 in May and 8.6 in June 2009 (seasonally adjusted, so if you'd like to compare different months against each other, compare away).
The national unemployment rate in June was 9.5 percent.
Breakouts for individual Capital Region counties after the jump. Every county showed a decrease in the unemployment rate compared to June 2009.
The Capital Region's economy is performing relatively well
The Albany metro area was among the 21 economically strongest performing large metro areas through the first quarter of 2010, according to the Brookings Institution.
The report bases the rankings on a handful of categories: employment, unemployment, output, home prices, and foreclosure rates.
The Albany metro area scored well for foreclosed properties and both employment and unemployment -- and relatively well for housing prices (the ranks, with the associated data, are after the jump).
Of course, all these rankings are relative to other metro areas. The overall picture is not great. The Brookings report describes the current national situation as "a jobless and increasingly fragile recovery."
The Morrissey Club: a chamber for the "creative class"
Bob Millis thinks the Capital Region's musicians, artists and inventors have a lot in common. He also believes they can do a lot to help each other.
Millis, a business strategy consultant who blogs about technology, business, economics, community and other stuff, is also one of the founders of The Morrissey Club -- a sort of chamber of commerce alternative for the creative class of the Capital Region.
You can check the group out tomorrow when they team up with Sustainable Saratoga to host a panel discussion with James Kunstler and others at Skidmore.
Millis talked with AOA about the group, who it's for and why the Capital Region needs it.
The Capital Region's unemployment rate is a little better. Sort of. Maybe.
The dots mark the Capital Region unemployment rate for each May since 2000. It's easier to read big.
The Capital Region's unemployment rate was 6.5 percent in May, according to the state Department of Labor. It was 6.5 percent in April and 6.7 percent in May 2009. (May to May is the best comparison because the local unemployment rate is not seasonally adjusted.)
The labor department reports the number of non-farm jobs in the Capital Region last month was down 2,500 compared to May 2009. There are still almost 30,000 people unemployed in the Capital Region.
New York State's overall unemployment rate in May was 8.3 -- the lowest rate since April 2009. The state's rate was 8.4 this past April and 8.4 in May 2009 (seasonally adjusted). But the labor department says the number of non-farm jobs in the state last month was down 22,700 compared to May 2009.
So, what's up here? There are fewer jobs compared to this time year -- but the unemployment rate is down (slightly)?
The benefit -- and cost -- of living here
The Albany metro area ranked #18 for quality of life in an analysis by Portfolio.com of the nation's 67 biggest metros.
Albany was just behind San Francisco and just ahead of Worcester. Raleigh was #1.
The metros were ranked on 20 criteria. Most of the categories are economic indicators such as household income -- but the set also includes categories such as commuting time and new home stock. Albany scored very well for jobless rate (3rd) and commuting time (7th). (The numbers were pulled from 2006-2008 Census Bureau figures, so many have probably since changed.)
The selection of categories highlights how tricky it is to figure something like "quality of life." Sure, people are probably happier when they have a short commute and don't have to scrape to pay the mortgage. But stats like that don't necessarily catch other important elements -- like weather, cultural opportunities or restaurant quality.
Cost of living: a coalition of local development groups has posted a cost of living calculator that compares other metro areas to the Capital Region. The calculator provides an overall cost comparison -- and it also breaks out individual items.
[via @techvalleyny]
Earlier on AOA: Misconceptions about Albany?
New York continues to add jobs
The dots mark the unemployment rate for each April since 2000. It's easier to read large.
The Capital Region's unemployment rate was 6.5 percent in April, according to the state Department of Labor. It was 7.2 percent in March and 6.5 percent in April 2009. (April to April is the best comparison because the local unemployment rate is not seasonally adjusted.)
The labor department reports the Capital Region added more than 4,000 jobs last month. There were almost 30,000 people unemployed in the Capital Region.
New York State's overall unemployment rate was 8.4 -- that's lowest rate since May 2009. The state's rate was 8.6 in March and 8.1 in April 2009 (seasonally adjusted). The labor department says the state added jobs for the fourth straight month.
That unemployment rate for the entire United States was 9.9 percent in April.
Breakouts for individual Capital Region counties are after the jump.
At the pump
The chart above is from AlbanyGasPrices.com, the crowd-sourced gas prices site. It tracks the average price for a gallon of regular gasoline in the Albany area over the past year. The price has backed off during the last week or so, but it's still just about at the high for the last year.
If you go to the Albany Gas Prices site, you can graph the price against the national average (it tracks pretty closely) and crude oil prices -- and over different time spans, too.
AAA also tracks this data for the metro area, but without the graphs (and who doesn't love a graph).
The federal Energy Information Administration forecasted today that average gasoline prices will increase about four percent over the next year.
[prompted by a tweet from @AndyArthur]
Earlier on AOA:
+ From 2008: Gas hits four dollars and everyone's squeezed
+ How many gallons per mile?
+ Save money on gas... at Price Chopper?
graph: Albany Gas Prices
Pay gap smaller in New York, but still wide
New York State ranks #6 in the nation for having the smallest pay gap between male and female workers. But women here still only make 78 percent of what men do, according to AAUW.*
Wyoming has the smallest gap (women make 89 percent as much as men there). Alaska has the biggest (women at 64 percent). Nationally, women make 71 percent as much as men.
A 2007 analysis by two researchers at AAUW reports that even when controlling for factors such as experience (including work hours), training, education, and personal characteristics, men still make five percent more than women.
The Harvard Business Review has a whole section dedicated to pay gap issues this month. This article about "delusions of progress" for women in management was particularly interesting.
*That's for "median earnings for ... male and female full-time, year-round college-educated workers, ages 25 and older." The gap is smaller -- and New York ranks one spot better -- for "median earnings for ... male and female full-time, year-round workers, ages 16 and older, all educational levels." The data are from the Census Bureau's 2008 American Community Survey.
[via @SenGillibrand and @NMessier]
Earlier on AOA: RPI's Shirley Ann Jackson tops compensation chart
photo: Flickr user sylvar
A few more jobs
The Capital Region's unemployment rate was 7.2 percent last month, according to numbers out from the state Department of Labor today. That's down a bit from February (7.7 percent) and about the same as March of 2009 (7.1 percent). The labor department figures the area added 2,700 jobs last month -- but it's still 6,700 jobs behind where it was in March 2009.
There are almost 33,000 unemployed people in the Capital Region.
A county-by-county breakdown is after the jump. As you'll see, Albany and Saratoga counties aren't doing all that badly (relatively). Schoharie County, which the DOL includes in the Capital Region, is hurting.
New York State's unemployment rate was 8.8 in March (9.2 in February | 8.2 in March 2009). The national unemployment rate was 10.2 (10.4 in February | 9.0 in March 2009).
Numbers for the Capital Region are not seasonally adjusted (so the best comparison is the month from the year before). State and national numbers are seasonally adjusted.
The new SUNY strategic plan
SUNY released the outline of its new strategic plan today (here's the flip-through brochure). Overall, the plan aims to set up SUNY to "drive New York's economy" and revitalize communities. It includes six "big ideas":
+ A focus on entrepreneurialism, including mentoring and support for startups.
+ A "cradle to career" education pipeline. Initiatives include an effort to reduce new teacher attrition and more co-op jobs.
+ Focus on health care -- research and jobs.
+ Renewable energy technology
+ Increasing presence in local communities. Among the initiatives for this focus: more student volunteer work and "study abroad" opportunities within the state (well, Long Island is sort of like its own country).
Step one for the plan apparently was branding the university system to look like a biotech company (brochure cover on the right).
SUNY has 64 campuses and almost 465,000 students. About 18,000 of those students are at UAlbany.
Patented
There were 203 patents issued to companies/people in the Capital Region during the first quarter of this year, according to local IP law firm Hoffman Warnick (84 were issued to GE). That's up almost 8 percent from the same quarter a year ago, and about flat from the quarter before. (Patent totals often get touted as signs of innovation and economic vitality, but doubts about that view have been gaining attention.)
Among the Capital Region patents: a Schenectady company was a issued a patent for locking box lid flaps (image to the right).
[via @erikimorton]
Not any worse
It's something.
What now counts as good news: the Capital Region's unemployment rate didn't get any worse last month.
The state Department of Labor reported today that the area's unemployment rate was 7.7 percent in February. It was 7.8 percent in January and 7.2 percent a year ago. *
The labor department figures there were about 4,700 more jobs in the Capital Region last month, compared to January. That's down almost 10k jobs from February 2009.
There were more than 35,000 unemployed people in the Capital Region last month.
Statewide, the unemployment rate was 8.8 percent (7.8 percent outside NYC). That's the same as January. It was 7.5 percent in February 2009. The national unemployment rate was 9.7 percent. **
A labor department official noted in the press release accompanying the numbers that "following previous recessions, it has taken the state about five years, on average, to regain all of the jobs lost during a downturn."
A county-by-county breakdown for the Capital Region is after the jump.
Also: For a different angle on the unemployment situation, here's tcrpmg's recent experience at a few job fairs.
The wrong way
The Capital Region's unemployment rate since the start of the recession.
The state Department of Labor reported today that Capital Region's unemployment rate was 7.8 percent last month -- that's up from 6.9 percent in December, and 6.8 percent in January 2009.*
The raw numbers of unemployment send it home for us, though: more than 35,000 in the Capital Region were counted as unemployed last month.
The labor department also released its revised numbers for all of 2009. It reports that the average number of the jobs in the Capital Region declined 2.6 percent last year compared to 2008 -- that was one of the smallest drops in the state.
Statewide, the labor department reports that the average unemployment rate was 8.4 percent last year -- the highest mark since 1992. For January 2010, the state's unemployment rate was 8.8 percent -- compared to 8.9 percent in December and 7.1 percent in January 2009.**
The county-by-county breakdown for the Capital Region is after the jump.
* not seasonally adjusted
** seasonally adjusted
Median homes prices for January
Prices by county
Here are the median home sales prices for the Capital Region in January, as reported by the Greater Capital Association of Realtors.
Interestingly, or maybe oddly or maybe coincidentally, the average number days on the market was down in every county -- except Saratoga, which also registered the highest jump in median price. (Monthly numbers should be taken with a grain or two of salt -- especially in January, when a few sales one or way the other can shift a small pool of sales.)
GCAR's CEO notes in a press release that homes on the lower end of the price spectrum continue to sell more quickly than homes on the higher end, perhaps because of the first-time homebuyer tax credit.
Earlier on AOA:
+ Median home prices by city for 2010
+ Our housing market is overvalued?
Our housing market is overvalued?
Via Kim M comes a follow up of sorts to this week's post about median home prices in the Capital Region. An analysis for CNN Money figures that the Albany market's home prices are "overvalued" by five percent. (Only 89 of 299 markets surveyed were figured to be overvalued.)
The same methodology was used to conclude that the market here was overvalued by 19 percent in 2006. The sale price in the Capital then was $189,900, according to GCAR. The median sale price at the end of 2009 was $192,500. (It would appear that GCAR and CNN Money are using different definitions for this market. CNN Money has the median price for this area pegged at 198,900.)
By the way: the Capital Region had one of the nation's lowest rates of home foreclosure in 2009.
Earlier on AOA:
+ Lots of houses
+ What's the price of a little extra style?
Median home prices by city
Median home prices for the Capital Region, by year (stats from GCAR)
The Greater Capital Association of Realtors (GCAR, to its friends) recently started including breakdowns of home sales data by city in its monthly stats release. GCAR released the December numbers yesterday, so there's now data for all of 2009. We thought it'd be interesting to see how the median home prices in various cities and towns in the Capital Region stacked up for the year.
You might surprised by which city's median price increased the most. (Yep, there actually were a few increases.)
Capital Region unemployment rate up
The Capital Region's unemployment rate since the start of the recession.
The Capital Region's unemployment rate was 7 percent in December, according to the state Department of Labor. That's up from 6.7 percent in November -- and 5.9 percent in December 2008 (that's the best comparison because the numbers are seasonally adjusted).
The number that strikes us about the unemployment data is the raw total: more than 31,000 people are unemployed in the Capital Region.
The labor department includes Schoharie County in the Capital Region rate, which probably skews things a bit. Schoharie's unemployment rate was pegged at 9.2 percent in December. The county-by-county breakdown is after the jump.
The state's overall unemployment rate was 8.8 percent in December, up from 8.4 percent the month before and 6.8 percent a year ago.
State unemployment rate corrected Friday morning.
... said Kaitlin about Viva Kaitlin!