Also, since their pre-recession peaks, housing markets within the Sunbelt have experienced drastic reductions in price and sale volume, far greater than any other region of the US, according to the report. In most cases, these housing markets have yet to begin recovery. However, as a result of positive office demand growth, employment and migration indicators, there is a strong chance that most of these geographies are hitting their market low and will soon begin to recover, if this has not begun already. Since employment and other indicators point to recovery while housing prices are only beginning to stabilize or in some cases are still decreasing, continued economic, employment and office-sector growth should lead to gradual, but steady, gains in the housing sector moving forward.

In addition, the report indicates that markets such as Jacksonville, Miami, Orange County, San Diego, Tampa and West Palm Beach have surpassed the national average in total non-farm PBS job growth. Floridian markets have dominated the jobs recovery of late: Jacksonville’s 5.9% annual increase in PBS jobs is among the largest in the nation, while Tampa’s 2.5-plus% annual growth in all measures shows signs of revival and diversification. Miami also surpasses both national expectations, increasing at around 1.9% overall annually.

In terms of domestic migration, the majority of Sunbelt cities display a common pattern: a net loss of residents in 2007, shifting to an inflow of residents in 2008 or 2009 and then stable, yet increasing, population growth in 2010 and through 2011. Nearly 75% of the Sunbelt markets are once again showing significant positive migration, with Florida reporting the largest increase of at least 20%. As the hub to Latin America, Miami and Ft. Lauderdale are leading the charge due to strong immigration trends from Latin America that drive population, business and economic growth.

Consistent gains in employment across multiple sectors, with emphasis on diversifying economies, is vital to the continued improvement of most Sunbelt geographies in 2012. Since job performance has remained either constant or accelerating in these metropolitan areas—not only among themselves, but also outpacing national results—it is probably that most Sunbelt markets will recover faster than the US as a whole in 2012 and 2013, the report indicates. These markets should see rebounds in their housing markets as well, driving even further office demand from the housing sectors (homebuilding, mortgage companies, etc.).

“Whereas migratory patterns drove the Sunbelt to unprecedented growth in the pre-recession years, those patterns will now be reflective of recent strong office recovery in these markets, being more economically sustainable and diverse than before with the potential to surpass the rest of the country,” says Sikaitis. “Even with these positive shifts, most of these geographies are two to three years away from returning to pre-2007 levels; so, while we are upbeat about the recovery for these markets, we remain realistic and guarded in the fact that we are not yet back to 2006 territory and likely will not be until the 2014-2015 timeframe.”