Albuquerque Dominates Job Growth

On a year-over-year basis in October, Albuquerque continued to dominate wage job growth in the state, and those gains, as reported last week, were fairly decent for New Mexico. The Department of Workforce Solutions released detailed October job numbers yesterday.
Metro Albuquerque added 6,000 wage jobs on a seasonally unadjusted basis between October 2016 and October 2017. The 1.5% annual growth was just a hair behind the state’s 1.6%. For the month between September and October, Albuquerque added 1,900 jobs, all thanks to government, which grew by 2,000 jobs including 1,600 from state government.
For the year, Albuquerque’s growth was private sector, led 1,400 finance jobs (doing what, I wonder?), a eight percent jump from sector’s low base of 18,400 jobs. Professional and business services and education and health care both added 1,300 jobs. Construction and leisure and hospitality (tourism) each added 1,000 jobs. Leisure and hospitality lost 1,300 jobs during September due, I presume, to seasonal reductions.
For Santa Fe and Las Cruces, local government in Las Cruces, down 500 jobs for the year, was the only sector with job movement (up or down) of more than 200.

Abq Trash Official Wrong About Trash Bin Placement, Trash Bin Placement Rules Are Fantasy

Via D’Val Westphal, the Albuquerque Journal’s road and traffic columnist, we hear from Diane Winkler, marketing manager / public information for the Albuquerque Solid Waste Department, that “the city ordnance for Solid Waste does require that trash and recycle bins be placed back on a resident’s property 24 hours after service pick up. In addition, the trash and recycling bins cannot be put out on the curb more than 12 hours prior to service pick up.”
The one requirement is generous. It allows bins to be left out over night.
The requirement about taking out the bins is one of those bureaucratic unenforceable fantasies standing against reality. On my block a good many of the bins are placed in the street the night before pickup. This makes sense. People have jobs and children. Putting out the trash bin is about a ten minute chore that could blow a hole in tightly scripted morning tasks.
In any case, how would the city enforce the rule—have trash bin cops cruise neighborhoods? Burglars, not to mention murderers, rank much higher on the law enforcement list.
Ms Winkler talks about putting the trash bins on the curb. This is wrong. Look around a while on the city’s website and you will find, “Place your cart in the gutter near your driveway with the wheels against the curb by 7 am on your scheduled pick-up day. Place your container 5 ft away from all obstructions.
The website lists a hierarchy of violation actions starting with “1st violation will be documented.”
I keep my trash bins in the yard. They are nearer to the door and I don’t have to look at them, a good thing since the bins are really ugly.

NM Adds 13,200 Jobs

Statistical significance appeared in the performance of the New Mexico economy during October, all of it in a good way.
Employment grew by 13,200 jobs on a seasonally adjusted basis between October 2016 and October 2017. That’s 1.6% growth, fairly amazing all in all. The Bureau of Labor Statistics and the state’s Department of Workforce Solutions released summary job statistics earlier this afternoon. The BLS makes the judgments about significance.
Also getting the significance blessing was the year-over-year unemployment rate drop from 6.8% to 6.1%. The unemployment rate remains two points above the national 4.1% unemployment, which also is a significant difference. Our unemployment rate remains third nationally behind Alaska (7.2%) and the District of Columbia (6.6%).
The gain was 13,100 wage jobs on a not seasonally adjusted basis. That split among 13,900 new private sector jobs and loss of 800 government jobs.
The federal government added 200 jobs over the year. The state netted a 200-job loss including 300 fewer in education. Local government dropped 800 jobs including 100 in education.
The sector gainers were led by leisure and hospitality (tourism), up 4,000 jobs, professional and business services, up 3,500 jobs, and construction, presumably aided by the Facebook project outside Los Lunas and up 2,100 jobs.
Education added 1,400 jobs. Retail trade, transportation and finance each gained 1,100 jobs over the year.
Mining continued the losses, down 800 jobs over the year.

Oct. Homes Sales Up 16% From Year Ago

The sale of 970 single-family detached homes closed in metro Albuquerque during October. The performance was a 31-unit, or 3.1%, drop from September. October sales increased 134 units, or 16%, from October 2016.
The homes took an average of 46 days to sell, eight days, or 14.8%, faster than the year-ago period.
The Greater Albuquerque Association of Realtors released the September sales report last Friday, November 10.
Townhouses and condominiums sold even faster. The average sales period was 43 days. October saw the sale closed on 177 homes, the second highest sales month of 2017 and 27% more than October 2016.
Home prices were higher during October than a year ago, as might be expected during a time of increasing sales. Pries have fairly stable for about six months.
The median sales price was $199,450, a 5.5%, or $10,450 increase during the year. The median sales price has been around $200,000 since May.
For the average price, it was $237,286 during October, a one-year increase of nearly $20,000, or 8.7%. Excepting a one time jump to $242,000 in May, the average has been about $236,000.

Amazon Cross Border Proposal Gets Attention

Amazon received 238 proposals for the location of its new headquarters. One was in two countries, Santa Teresa, New Mexico, and San Jeronimo, and San Jose del Sol, in Chihuahua, Mexico. The communities together are the, “Los Santos Binational Community.”
It consists of a proposed 100-acre site in each country, a special-use port of entry, and a unique hexagonal design, according to the November 2 NM Partnership Border Region Business Update newsletter.
The Seattle Times, MSN, CNN Money, Business Insider, the Huffington Post/Mexico and USA Today have covered the proposal.
The website is www.HQ2Countries.com.