By: Greg Langston (Dallas)
Strong job
growth has been one of the main drivers of the Dallas commercial real estate
market, with analysts expecting this trend to continue in 2015.
The Dallas
market experienced broad job growth in 2014. A recent study from the W. P.
Carey School of Business at Arizona State University ranks Dallas third among
U.S. metropolitan areas in terms of job growth, with notable gains coming from the
“‘professional and business services’” industries. The region’s small
businesses also had a very strong year, holding the top spot on the Paychex/IHS Small Business Jobs Index from
October 2014 to January 2015.
This job
growth has been driven by favorable business conditions in the Metroplex, which
in turn bolsters business growth. A recent piece by the Dallas Morning News attributes this to Dallas’
growing status as major tech hub, prompting more growing corporations and
startups to flock to the city while simultaneously becoming an attractive place
to live for potential new residents. Furthermore, this growing job pool primarily
draws from well-paying white collar jobs, providing more support for commercial
and residential real estate markets alike.
With that
being said, the only question that remains is whether Dallas job numbers will
continue their upward trajectory in 2015. We’ve already seen early job numbers
for small businesses and, although Dallas remains well above the national
average, national growth has notably slowed. In terms of larger corporations,
however, this will remain to be seen--though, to be fair, the commercial real
estate market is showing no signs of slowing at the moment.
The
relationship between steady job growth and favorable business conditions has
been absolutely crucial to the success of the Dallas commercial real estate
market over the past several years. The Dallas market experienced a stellar
2014, with its office market ranking among the most vibrant
in the nation. While it remains to be seen whether this robust growth will
continue in the year 2015, expect job numbers to provide some potential insight
when they are released.
