Honolulu Among ‘Recession-Proof’ Cities

BrookingsHonolulu was named among the top ten most ‘recession-proof’ cities in the country, according to a new MetroMonitor report out of The Brookings Institution. The capital of the Aloha State ranked tenth,  sandwiched between Texas cities El Paso and Houston. Albany, New York took top honors.

The report examined 100 large metropolitan areas for stable labor and housing markets and robust economic activity. (CNNMoney.com pulled out the Top 21.) Honolulu was noted for seeing strong job growth (the only metropolitan area outside of the U.S. south to gain jobs two quarters in a row), as well as for having recovered its “pre-recession levels of output.”

According to preliminary figures released by the U.S. Department of Labor on Friday, the jobless rate in Honolulu was 5.2 percent last month, with employment in Hawaii as a whole down to 6.7 percent. This compared to the national average of 9.7 percent.

3 Responses

  1. Alex Cortez says:

    Great stats, Ryan. I just wrote a post about real estate investing in which I discussed unemployment rates, we in Hawaii are enjoying a remarkably low rate when compared to the national average and even more so when compared to the hardest hit states (CA, FL, MI). Honolulu definitely deserves its distinction of being among the most resilient economic places in the US, with a determined work force and a prime location.

  2. Blaine says:

    Yeah, right. Has any of these buffoons tried to get a job in Honolulu, lately? Better hope they’re not looking for positions as “journalists.” We have a few of them wandering around who “will work for food”!

    Our jobless rate has always been near the top in the nation, but they never consider the size or structure of the market, when they do these. The high rate doesn’t necessarily translate into large numbers of high-paying jobs.

    The phrase, “You want fries with that?” comes to mind.

  3. Aloha Tony says:

    Wow great find. I’m re-posting this on my site.

    keep it up Ryan!

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