by Valorie H. Rice
Senior Specialist, Business Information
Coconino County had the highest per capita personal income in the state for 2017 at $46,266 followed by Maricopa at $45,573. These were the only two counties with larger per capita personal income figures than the $42,280 posted for the state. Pima County ranked third with $41, 637. These figures come from the Local Area Personal Income estimates released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis on November 15. Total personal income increased 5.6% for Arizona between 2016 and 2017, with counties within the state ranging from an increase of 6.6% in Pinal down to 2.5% in Graham. The release included new data for 2017 and revised data for 2001-2016.
Arizona house prices appreciated 7.1% over-the-year in the third quarter 2018. This was higher than the nation at 6.3%, but far below Idaho, which at 15.1% had the highest percent change among states. All fifty states had increased home prices from third quarter 2017 to third quarter 2018 with Alaska just above even at a 0.2% increase according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency November 27 release. State data uses a purchase-only index, but the report also provides metropolitan area-level data with an all-transactions index (which includes both purchases and refinance mortgages). Here are the one-year percent change in house prices for Arizona metros for second quarter 2018: Flagstaff 6.7%, Lake Havasu City-Kingman 12.6%, Phoenix 9.7%, Prescott 9.9%, Sierra Vista-Douglas 1.8%, Tucson 6.6% and Yuma 6.0%.
Phoenix home prices increased 7.2% over the year in September, making it one of only four metro areas out of 20 on the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Index with larger price increases in September than in August. This was the second month in a row that year-over-year gains for the nation were below six percent, dropping to 5.5% in September from 5.8% in August. The 20-city composite was 5.1% according to the November 27 release. Las Vegas continued to be the metropolitan area with the highest 12-month house price gains at 13.5% followed by San Francisco at 9.9% and Seattle at 8.4%, all three of which had lower price gains compared to the month prior.
The second estimate for third quarter 2018 U.S. real GDP remained the same as the advance estimate, at 3.5%. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released these figures November 28. Real GDP increased 4.2% in the second quarter and 2.2% in the first quarter.
Of the ten largest counties in the nation, Phoenix had the biggest over-the-year increase in employment in June 2018 according to the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages November 21 release from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Employment increased in 309 of the 349 largest counties in the U.S. from June 2017 to June 2018. Pima and Maricopa are the only Arizona counties included in the release. Maricopa employment increased 2.8% between June 2017 and June 2018 while Pima employment increased 1.6%. Pima County had a larger increase in wages, however, rising 3.8% over-the-year for the second quarter 2018 compared to 3.0% for Maricopa County.
Arizona employment growth was 3.1% in October year-over-year. In comparison, U.S. job growth was only 1.7%. All sectors reported over-the-year gains in employment with construction having largest boost in job numbers. Employment growth in October for Arizona metros: Phoenix 3.7%, Lake Havasu City-Kingman 3.6%, Prescott 2.6%, Tucson 1.9%, Yuma 1.3%, Flagstaff 1.6%, and Sierra Vista-Douglas -2.1%. The November 15 release from the Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity indicated the state’s unemployment rate ticked up slightly to 4.7% in October compared to 4.6% in September.
Arizona real GDP increased 4.2% in the second quarter. Real GDP increased in all 50 states the second quarter 2018 reported by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) November 14 release, ranging from 6.0% in Texas to 2.5% in Delaware. The BEA plans to provide county-level GDP estimates for the first time on December 12.
