Search
 

DC Retail is Hot

WASHINGTON, DC-Buoyed by strong, steady job growth, the nation's capital and environs are primed for retail expansion.

By Dees Stribling | Updated on December 06, 2004

WASHINGTON, DC-Driven by what it characterizes as the strongest metro economy in the nation, a new report by the research arm of Virginia-based Transwestern Commercial Services, Delta Associates, on the Washington, DC, retail market as the strongest in the nation, too. “The retail market in the Washington area is strong and growing,” the report says. “Major national retailers continue to enter this market due to high per capita income and an expanding employment base. The retailers interested in Washington run the gamut, from discount retailers like Wal-Mart and Target, to electronics stores like Best Buy and Circuit City, to higher-end home furnishing stores like the Container Store and Storehouse Inc.”

Underpinning this retailer-friendly business climate is that holy grail of economic development, job growth. Citing U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers, the report says that the Washington metro area economy generated 65,600 new payroll jobs in the 12 months ending in September. This represents a 2.3% rate of growth, compared to 1.3% nationally.

These jobs aren’t just any jobs. Many are well paying. “Professional and business services firms–particularly contractors who serve the federal government–added 22,700 net jobs to the Washington employment base over the last 12 months, bolstering the local economy and maintaining job growth well above the long-term average of 50,000 per year,” Delta notes. Moreover, the BLS puts the Washington area unemployment rate at 3.2% in August 2004, down from 3.5% 12 months before and well below a cyclical high of 4.0% in June 2002. This is the lowest rate in the nation among major metro markets and compares favorably to the national rate of 5.4% in August.

Want to continue reading?
Become a Free ALM Digital Reader.

Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:

  • Unlimited access to GlobeSt and other free ALM publications
  • Access to 15 years of GlobeSt archives
  • Your choice of GlobeSt digital newsletters and over 70 others from popular sister publications
  • 1 free article* every 30 days across the ALM subscription network
  • Exclusive discounts on ALM events and publications

*May exclude premium content
Already have an account?

NOT FOR REPRINT

© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.

GlobeSt

Join GlobeSt

Don't miss crucial news and insights you need to make informed commercial real estate decisions. Join GlobeSt.com now!

  • Free unlimited access to GlobeSt.com's trusted and independent team of experts who provide commercial real estate owners, investors, developers, brokers and finance professionals with comprehensive coverage, analysis and best practices necessary to innovate and build business.
  • Exclusive discounts on ALM and GlobeSt events.
  • Access to other award-winning ALM websites including ThinkAdvisor.com and Law.com.

Already have an account? Sign In Now
Join GlobeSt

Copyright © 2024 ALM Global, LLC. All Rights Reserved.