THE ALLMANAC

Texas Again Leads the Country in Job Creation

TEXAS: And the jobs winner is…Texas…again. According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Texas has created 213,300 non-farm jobs since May 2024, more than any other state in the past year. Texas also led the country last month with 28,100 new jobs and the state’s unemployment rate remained at 4.1%. Texas also reached a 15.8 million labor force, an all-time high, plus a self-employed high of nearly 15.2 million. The state has led the country in job creation over the past decade, with more than 2.5 million new jobs. Since 2020, more than 200 companies have relocated to Texas, particularly from California, drawn by the state’s pro-business policies, quality of life and lower cost of living for its employees. Texas’ population stands at around 30.6 million. The robust DFW area, which also has benefited from corporate relocations and domestic and foreign migration, has been projected to surpass Chicago in the next decade as the country’s third-largest metro area.

DFW: With the boom in jobs, there’s a need for office space and housing. And new home sales in DFW hit a new high for the year in May with 2,129 sales, up about 10% from April, and more than 7% from last May, according to a new report from HomesUSA.com. And Zonda, a technology and data firm serving the real estate industry, says in a new report that for the eighth consecutive year, North Texas ranks as the top new construction market in the country, according to housing market data it analyzed. Houston, San Antonio and Austin also made Zonda’s Top 5 list for the hottest new home construction markets. In contrast, the U.S. Commerce Department said that new home sales across the country fell 13.7% in May, the biggest drop in three years, much of it perhaps due to more inventory, higher mortgage rates and economic and global uncertainty.

DFW: A Dallas developer has tapped Cowtown for its latest mammoth project—and is getting a hand from Fort Worth city leaders. Larkspur Capital is planning to invest $1.7 billion into a mixed-use development at a nearly 40-acre site at University Drive and White Settlement Road, just west of downtown. The four-phase, 10-year project would be one of the largest new office developments in the city since the 1980s. In partnership with Robert Bass’ Keystone investment company, the development will include 1,800 apartment units, nearly 900,000 square feet of high-end office space, nearly 240,000 square feet of retail space and a 175-room hotel. The city has approved $125 million in incentives for the project over 15 years. Infrastructure work on the project is expected to begin later this year. 

DFW: Another real estate investor and developer is looking to Celina for a huge mixed-use development. DFW LAND of Dallas recently bought more than 100 acres at Preston Road and the Collin County Loop where it plans to build a $250 million development to include a grocery store and buildings dedicated to office, retail, and medical space, plus hotels and possibly multifamily units. The project sits in an area that includes similar developments in one of the fastest-growing communities in the country. The property once was part of the holdings of the Choate family, who settled the area more than 170 years ago. DFW Land could begin construction next year. Development in Celina and nearby Prosper has boomed over the past several years as more families and businesses have moved into the area, many from other parts of the country. Celina’s population has spiked nearly 20% in the past year to just over 50,000. 

VIRGINIA: The secluded and expansive estate belonging to the late “Today” show weatherman and personality Willard Scott has hit the market. The gregarious Scott bought the 240-acre property in the Virginia Shenandoah Valley in 1992 and renamed it “Willardville.” The property still boasts several buildings original to the property and others constructed during Scott’s ownership, including a “spring house” that actually has a fresh artisan water spring running through it. Scott died in 2021 at age 87. He left the property to his daughter Mare, who now spends most of her time in Montana and is unable to take care of the estate, which is listed at $3.8 million. 

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