The Local Economy Grinds Higher in August Consumers Spend, Home Values Rise, and Jobs are Abundant

Tallahassee, FL – The Tallahassee Economic Index (TEI), the city’s top economic growth indicator, today today released numbers ending August 2018. Following a .42 point move down in July, the Index rose .937 points from 39.167 to 40.104 in August.

“For just the second time this year, the index was positive as August saw a slight tick up. Strong consumers helped lead this month’s move higher by spending significantly more money on things like apparel, shoes, and plane tickets on a year over year basis.” said TEI Founder Brett F. Ewing. “The weakest segment in the report was business spending, which saw both of our categories most levered to small businesses show a move down.”

“The index once again had a very small move in August, albeit it this time a positive one,” said Lance Mitchell, Director of Research at the TEI. “The flattening of the index throughout 2018 continues to show moderating growth in the most leading economic categories we employ. Median home sales price grew at an unexpectedly strong pace after a few months of lackluster performance, but new construction permits continue to languish at multi-year lows and realtor sales remain on the weaker side. This puts Tallahassee in lockstep with the national real estate market where growth definitely seems to be cooling and it is something we will be watching closely to see whether it is just a cold or we catch the full blown flu.”

• Lumber Sales fell 7.69 percent MoM, and gained 1.88 percent YoY
• New Construction Permits toppled 56 percent from July, and also 71.05 percent from last August
• Initial Claims for Reemployment Assistance fell by 19.71 percent MoM, and rose 1.81 percent YoY
• Realtor Sales slid 5.99 percent from July, and 1.6 percent from a year ago
• Median Existing Home Sales Prices recovered 9.77 percent MoM, and advanced 5.11 percent YoY
• Airport Traffic gained 1.19 percent from last month, and 13.20 percent from August of last year