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Unemployment rate continues to defy national average in the Greater Dane County area!
As the presidential race for 2012 gets underway, candidates from both sides and even citizens themselves can’t stop saying: it’s the economy, stupid! Since the global financial meltdown in 2007, unemployment in America has risen sharply—currently, the national average is just under 10%. But in Dane County, our unemployment rate is only 5.3%.
What is it about Dane County that has helped us defy this hardship which is striking so many municipalities around the nation? Dane County is a fast-growing place, which helps generate innovation, and it has a local economy which is diversified. There are many important industries in the Dane Country area, including healthcare, renewable energy, agriculture, and technology; the economy here is less dependent on the financial services that have ravaged the employment rates in other areas of the country.
Dane County is also home to the University of Wisconsin Madison, considered a public Ivy League college—which also happens to receive some of the top amounts of Federal funding every year. The high research and development funded by UW (it has the third highest R&D expenditures in the nation) also fuels jobs in our local area. The success of the Badgers in recent years hasn’t hurt local morale, either.
Along with the University of Wisconsin, the other excellent technical colleges and schools in the Dane County area ensure that our workforce is highly educated, helping us better weather a down economy. About 38% of adults in the Dane County area have a bachelor’s degree or higher—compared to just a quarter of the general population.
Dane County has also pioneered a “local sourcing” movement, efforts designed to create ties between local businesses which make our community stronger. In the past 5 years, relationships between food growers and local institutions have helped strengthen regional growers and retain agricultural jobs in the local area. This effort saw partnerships between growers and local institutional food purchasers like schools, universities, and hospitals.
With this in mind, what’s stopping you from moving to Dane County? At Keller Williams Realty we have residences in the Dane County area in a variety of sizes and architectural styles, from farmettes to condos. We don’t use high pressure sales tactics, and can be just the easy going, competent broker you’re looking for.
