Is the economy getting better where you live?

[Gumbo4x4]

Just closed a pretty decent factory in my hometown a month ago, so definitely not getting better. Gas prices are eating me up. My employer does appear to be on the upswing this year (fingers crossed).

 

[wvjules]

I chose "the same" because things weren't bad around here before.

 

[pixiewings71]

Well around here it's about the same really. Not much has changed in my area (that I can tell or have heard about) but I live in a military community. In fact I live about 5 minutes off base. Our housing market crashed big time, we currently owe about 200k more than it's worth, I lost my job in June '10 and didn't find another one until April '11 (I'm about to have my 1 year anniversary!), took a pretty big pay cut when I came back to work too. People are still buying cars, have new tech toys, go out to eat and shop but we have a lot of empty houses due to foreclosures. I think a lot of people around here just walked away from their houses.......

 

[PatriciaH]

Two years ago we had to move from Florida- where it was really bad- back to Massachusetts for a job. We were always contract/temp in FL and got sick of it so we took the job with the really good benefits back here. It is steady but less money than DH made 8 years ago in MA (before we moved to FL.) I have been looking for work for 2 years now. Even part time. I work from home for now but I want to get out of the house and work. I have great work experience and education-it does not matter. There is nothing out there. When friends companies post a position they get hundreds-sometimes thousands of resumes. These are not big companies! Some people BEG in their cover letters. Saying they are trying to feed their family, etc. !!! DH got his current job through a good friend.

We live in a very nice town outside of Boston. The homes are worth a lot and people are pretty well to do. Several stores have closed over the past 2 years but others wind up going in. I think the little boutique clothing and jewelry stores are way overpriced when Marshalls, TJ Maxx and Khols are all nearby. That is why they fail. The T-shirts are $70 and they are still made in China. The restaurants here are still somewhat busy but I believe it is all people spending on credit. DH works at a bank and he gets the crying calls, sees all the bounced checks and fraud (putting stop payments on checks right after they are written, giving out debit card numbers when there is nothing in the account, etc.) every day. It is getting worse and worse. Soon the restaurants will start failing too. People reek of anger and desperation now and this is a good area!

I think gas will top $5 a gallon this summer and things will really go downhill. They want to cut MBTA service here-just awful. It is how a lot of people get into Boston now with gas prices through the roof. Airfares are getting to the "only the rich travel" rates. I am a travel agent- most people are not traveling. We are able to travel only because our friends work for an airline and give us buddy passes. We stay with my parents in FL or friends in CA and maybe do a night or two at a cast discount. Look at how many people on the DIS would not be able to pay for airfare if it were not for the Southwest credit card giving points.

I think we will really see the impact of the BP spill/chemicals and the Japan nuclear plant pouring radiation into the water soon in our health. The gulf is in bad shape. There is a dead zone there. We told DH's friend at work not to travel to/ go in the water at Clearwater, FL late last year. She said "but it is all cleaned up!" Well she has had a god awful infection in her privates for months now and the doctors can not figure out what it is. She told us she is sorry she ever swam there. Seals with radiation burns are washing up in Alaska, the fish are turning up with strange things in the Gulf and Alaska, hundreds of dolphins are washing up in the Cape here dying. It has begun Don't even get me started on all of the earthquake activity from Fracking and Iran/Israel/ Russia-SCARY stuff. And yes I am a POSITIVE person.

 

[BubMunkeyBles]

About the same. The state has eliminated full time jobs with benefits for a bunch of part time jobs that pay minimum wage with no benefits. It's a crapshoot.

 

[Marionnette]

In light of the DOW hitting the 13000 mark today, I wanted to see what you think. I just wanted a quick snapshot of how people are feeling about the economy across the nation. Do you think things are going better where YOU live (not where everyone else lives). We have a weird economy in my small town that seems disjointed from the rest of everyone else. So, it is really hard to see how things are really going when you live here.

For the record, things are going really well in my area. My husband is self employed and has his best month ever last month. For some reason, I just don't feel like going out and spending money though. I'm still in this save save save mode where I feel like the bottom is going to fall or something. So, humor me. How's it going where you live?

The DOW hit 13000 and then fell slightly, closing up 15.82 at 12,965.69. I'm watching the ticker now and it's back down around 15 points. While it is up from last year's low, it still hasn't recovered to the point where it was in 2008.

The economy in my area is lagging behind this stock market rally. Sun Oil recently began closing their refinery in Marcus Hook. ConocoPhillips is closing their Trainer facility. All told, over 800 well-paying jobs have been directly affected. The impact on the surrounding communities is worse. A study shows that for every job lost at the refineries, another 18 will be affected in the community. And on top of that, there is the loss of taxes from those industries that helped to support the local communities and schools. Tax money that will have to be recovered by increasing taxes on the remaining businesses and homeowners.

Our personal finances are good but not excellent. Our income is up from what it was last year but so are our expenses. I don't feel like we are getting ahead. It's more like treading water. We have a lot of friends and family members who are not as fortunate. One friend was out of work for over two years before he finally found a permanent full-time position. He isn't making the wages that he made before being let go, but it's a job. I have a few nieces and nephews who having been looking for work since they graduated from college last year. All of them are employed, but not in the field that they studied and not in a permanent position.

I don't think that things are getting better. There are theories as to why the unemployment figures are lower. Some attribute it to people taking any job just to have work. Others attribute it to discouraged workers who are no longer seeking employment. And then there is this interesting theory that I read in the WSJ earlier this month:

Here’s what happened: According to the Census Bureau, the civilian population grew by 1.5 million people in 2011. But the growth wasn’t distributed evenly. Most of the growth came among people 55 and older and, to a lesser degree, by people 16-24 years old. Both groups are less likely to work than people in their mid-20s to early 50s. So the share of the population that’s working is actually lower than previously believed. Taking that into account, the employment-population ratio went up. The unemployment rate wasn’t affected.​

Whatever the reason for the change in the numbers, it still doesn't feel like things are getting back to the way they were.

 

[DisneyMomma81]

Worse ~ I was furloughed Aug & Oct last year *not because there was no/low work - the reason I should be furoughed - luckily the work is fairly steady* I was fuloughed because my employer *the federal government* had to save some money somewhere, so about 55% of those who do what I do did not work. When we came back in Sept they offered loads of over time *how much did that cost?!?! I worked 23 hours of OT that month.

 

[verlee]

Well, I said worse, but not because we are struggling in our own home (yet). I am seeing food prices increase, gas prices increase, people can not sell their homes, friends unemployed, friends under-employed, the value of our home has gone down, our taxes have gone up, our health benefits have been reduced, our retirement benefits have been reduced...We in general are getting much less for our money. If the forcasted $5+ gas happens we will be forced to make major changes.

I saw today that gas was close to $6 already in Lake Buena Vista Not a good sign! I don't care what they keep saying, an increase in gas price is not a sign of economic health and recovery. This happened in '08 and we all know what happened.

 

[Nature Mom]

I voted about the same but it is only because of my husband's business that we are doing as well as still being in the category of 'same'. My photography business is making no money lately, and I left my career in law to homeschool our youngest child last year, so that salary is completely gone save for the contract work I occasionally take. We have simplified in so many ways, but our expenses just keep rising and rising, and I won't even get started on the escalating gas prices.

We are blessed because my husband is in a niche field in upper construction management, but for so many people we know, they are barely holding on. In our circle of friends and acquaintances, we have had 8 suicides in the past year. Everyone of those people would have been considered middle to upper middle class, and everyone of them left behind severe money issues. Sure, people are still spending like fools, but I don't know with what.

 

[a1tinkfans]

I said worse..heres what I see in my area
Gas prices are HIGH/Up, Property Taxes are HIGHER/Up, Home Values are DOWN, Sales of Homes are DOWN, Our Downtown Area has boarded up buildings that are epidemic, friends that have lost jobs are still out of work, Those that were lucky enough to secure a job, took salary hits and reduced to no benefits, Future pension plans are at High Risk. The local area has gone downhill, less are able to maintain what they have and there is limited to no one building/updating/repairing or adding to their homes or local economy. Personally I have seen decreased income, increased cost of higher education and feel guarded at best for the remainder of the year.
Big picture is that we'll be Okay, but okay should really be Thriving, and that dream has been pushed away for now............one day at a time...forge ahead, think ahead and push forward.
I hope that all that are actively seeking employment can find jobs that come with some level of security for their families

 

[erincon23]

I'm in suburban Chicago. Despite living in a state that has huge state government deficits and funding problems, things at least locally seem to be doing well. I'm seeing more help wanted ads in the paper. I work for a realtor, and she's had an increase in both listing agreements and sales. My DH works for a 20+ outlet, fairly nice (white tablecloth) restaurant chain, and has seen great revenues in the last six months -- in fact, if you only went by the business of restaurants in the area, you'd wonder why anybody thought there was an economy problem --everything's been packed. DH got this job after being out of work for 20 months, and within 6 months after starting, got a very nice promotion and even nicer raise.

BUT, our house, like so many is $40,000 underwater, and DS19 is having trouble finding a job. Brother and sister-in-law got evicted and are having trouble finding jobs (she has one, he doesn't really) and are living in someone's basement. All in all, things seem like they're getting better, but there are still pockets of trouble.

 

[lakelandgal70]

Well we are doing much better than we were in 2008. I think our town is doing a little better. Seems like the housing market is coming back according to the papers, that is if you believe what you read lol. Restaurants are always packed and we are always commenting to each other thought the economy was bad. So not sure what to think?

 

[mjbaby]

In my corner of the world, things do seem better. Several people I know have found jobs - good ones! - and several more have been promoted. Housing sales seem to have picked up, including some places that were up for quite a while. I tried to book one of two excellent local caterers for an event this spring and were told they are both booked solid. There's still a lot of pain- my company is laying off even as they are hiring - but there are definite signs of improving conditions.

 

[williamson_ja]

Thanks for all the great responses. It seems like it depends on where you live (of course). I'm still very concerned even though we are doing well. I guess no one knows what the future holds.

 

[arthur06]

We are doing better then 2008.

I had just finished a separation and child custody battle. So we were strapped from lawyer bills.

Its not like we are wiping with $20 bills or anything real lavish, but we are just in a better place financially.

 

[walkdmc]

I voted things are getting worse but only because crimes like robberies are up...way up since 2008. There's always some story on the local news about dummies being electrocuted while trying to steal metal along with home invasions and car break ins.

Personally, we are doing much better financially now compared to 2008. I don't feel that our good fortune has extended to others in our town.

 

[Planogirl]

It's mixed here.

We were never hit as hard in the job market as some areas plus the housing market slump seems to have improved. Foreclosures are down while housing sales seem to be up. Our restaurants never quit being crowded through all of it.

However, so many of the jobs seem to be in service now and those don't usually pay all that well. I'm concerned about high food and gas prices. Our salaries aren't keeping up!

 

[eliza61]

Finally seeing a bunch of "Hiring" signs around. My youngest (18) is working as is most of his senior class.
My job is hiring and last year and this year the average raise was 3% but everyone got a bonus since the companies earnings last year were through the roof. Many departments got end of year bonuses.

Its slow but steady improvement. Like Planogirl, we're keeping an eye out on gas and food prices.

 

[iheartpeterpan]

My perception is that we are now in a 2-tiered economy. For those fortunate enough to be on top of that economy - high wage earner executives, big investors, etc. - things are improving. Think the folks who can go out and drop a couple hundred bucks on dinner without thinking about it.

For regular folks, who live paycheck to paycheck and try to put a little back for kids school/retirement etc - there still seems to be a lot of job uncertainty/cuts and rising prices (particularly gas and health care) that cut into wages that are not rising at all or not keeping up with inflation. So for those folks, it is not getting better.

That's what I see anyway. My DH and I were out at a restaurant for a work function where the average entree was about $35 and the ticket at our table of 4 was probably over $200. It was absolutely packed with a 90 minute wait. I said man, you'd never know the economy was hurting based on this place. He said "these people aren't the regular people." That's sort of what I mean.

 

[MichiganKris]

I put about the same, because in some respects it's gotten better for my family and others it is worse. I lost my engineering job in Michigan in 2007. I ended up finding a wonderful job in 2010, unfortunately it's in Illinois. My husband can't find a job in Illinois, and I can't find one in Michigan so we're in two different states. We also are way underwater on our mortgage after living in the home for 14 years in Michigan, so I'm not sure what we are going to do with that.