(Community Matters) Forbes ranked the fastest growing US metropolitan areas in terms of population & economic growth, Austin ranked #1 (Houston #2, Dallas-Ft Worth #3, San Antonio #9) – unemployment and median salaries for local college-educated workers were also part of the calculations.
When Chuck Gordon and Mario Feghali started Sparefoot, the 25-year old entrepreneurs relocated to Austin, Texas, from Los Angeles, having received seed money from local tech incubator Capital Factory.
Perhaps not surprisingly, cities in Texas — which welcomed more than 427,000 newcomers from August 2011 to July 2012, according to the U.S. Census Bureau — dominated our list. Houston ranked second, behind Austin, followed by Dallas in third place and San Antonio in ninth. Robust labor markets, unemployment rates under 6% (well below the national average),no state income tax, a business-friendly regulatory environment, and strong population inflows all contributed to Texas towns’ high rankings.
Of course I think Capital Factory & its founder Joshua Baer are runaway competitive assets to Austin’s entrepreneurial eco-system. Just met Chuck Gordan, Mario Feghali and their partners at Sparefoot – who we’re hoping will be new members of the Entrepreneurs Foundation soon.
as an aside, I hadn’t realized Forbes ranks Utah as the best state for business and careers.
Community Matters 