by Kurt Badenhausen, Forbes
The Florida economy was hammered during the financial crisis as tourism slowed, real estate prices plummeted and jobs disappeared, but the state has crawled back and continues to see heavy net migration into nearly every Sunshine State metro. People are chasing jobs with three Florida metros ranked among the 10 places expected to have the fastest job growth over the next three years and seven among the top 25. Naples leads the way with a projected average annual rate of 4.1%. Unemployment peaked in Naples in January 2010 at 12.2%, but was just 5.4% last month and is expected to stay low. Joining Naples among the top spots for job growth are fellow southern Florida locales Cape Coral and Port St. Lucie.
Texas dominates the rest of top 10 with five metro areas led by Austin at 4.1%, a shade behind Naples. Texas was one of the last states to fall into a recession and one of the first to emerge. A pro-business government is expected to help spur further job growth in the Lone Star State. The only places with robust job growth outside of Florida and Texas are Greeley, Colo. and Raleigh, N.C., which ranks first on our annual look at the Best Places for Business and Careers.
Click here to read more about Texas’ Lone Star Success.