Once Again, Washington D.C. Can Suck It

23Dec09
In the recent Wall Street Journal MarketWatch survey, Des Moines was named the best city for business in 2009, beating out Washington D.C.

Despite having a low concentration of Fortune 1000 companies (41st of 101 cities) and low economic diversity, Des Moines' economy is also remarkably stable and companies from the industries we specialize in (insurance and finance) weathered the recession better than their peers because of it.

The Metro area grew at a healthy rate during the survey period (26th) and despite downsizing in some of the cities larger firms, medium to small firms are still hiring. Des Moines' unemployment rate is just 6% compared to 9.8% nationwide.

Small business especially has been a driver of the local economy as start ups for the year have slowed less than the national average, and the four years survival rate is considerably higher (54%).

As someone who's often thought of starting a sideline, that's real food for thought. In the meantime, it's good to have another reason to like where I live.