November will be a consequential election. Risks to our region’s business economy are large, whoever our next president is.
Our region is heavily reliant on three important industries: government, construction and hospitality. Each of these is already under stress.
Government employment in our region has been underperforming. Even with recent small gains, federal employment in the region is below the pandemic peak and remains well below pre-sequestration totals. and emerging data suggest that some local positions are being replaced with remote talent.
The challenges in our commercial real estate market have been well reported (including our recent piece in the Business Journal). Residential real estate new construction is not helping. The rate of single-family housing permits issued for 2023 was less than one-third of the average of our biggest competitor regions and declines in commercial real estate values are portending dramatic rises in regional residential property tax rates.…
Read the full story from the Washington Business Journal.
