The December 31, 2010 edition of the Wall Street Journal had an opinion piece by Steve Moore with the same title as the blog post. The final sentence of the article, referencing Scott’s campaign promise to create 700,000 new jobs in Florida, was “And don’t be surprised if this plan turns Florida’s real-estate bust into another boom”. Click here for the full article.
I couldn’t agree more. One of the mantras of Bill Clinton’s successful 1992 campaign was “It’s the economy, stupid”. Today, concerning our local (and statewide) real estate market, one could say “It’s the jobs, stupid”. Unemployed people can’t buy houses. And the Bay County unemployment rate currently stands at over 11%. Until that turns around, our house prices will continue to stagnate.