Preparing for Tomorrow's Workforce

The future of South Carolina's economic growth depends on having an educated and trained workforce prepared to fill the positions that new industry brings to the state.  The University of South Carolina conducted a study on where current gaps are in the workforce and where they will be in 20 years.

According to Dr. Joseph Von Nessen, “Cluster development and a diverse economy are important components in helping to bring good jobs to South Carolina, and identifying any existing mismatch between the educational requirements of these jobs and the current educational profile of the workforce is a necessary first step towards ensuring that South Carolinians are equipped with the necessary skill sets for these jobs."

To read the full article visit the link below.

Filling the Gaps

Interview with Dr. Joey Von Nessen

Dr. Joey Von Nessen was a guest on ETV and discussed the 2016 Economic Outlook for South Carolina. Visit the website below to listen to the whole interview.

Click HERE to listen

Mark Your Calendars!

It's time for the annual Carolina Classic Home and Garden Show.

This is the 50th anniversary for the show which features builders and home exhibitors of all kinds. The dates for this year's show are March 11-13.

Here's what you need to know!

What:

The 50th annual Carolina Classic Home & Garden Show

                Hosted by the Building Industry Association of Central South Carolina

                Presented by Clyde Nettles

 

See over 200 exhibitors with products and services for your home and garden.

 

Educational Seminars offered daily. 

 

Register to win prizes from exhibitors. 

 

When:

   Friday, March 11        11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

       >> Friday is Seniors Day. Guests age 62 and up enter free. Senior Expo from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

 

   Saturday, March 12   10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

  

   Sunday, March 13      11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

 

Admission:

  > Admission is $5 per person at the gate

    > Kids 14 and under enter free every day

    > Ages 62 and older enter free on Friday, March 11

    > Military Discount (with valid I.D.) every day

 

Where:

Three buildings and outdoor areas of the SC State Fairgrounds in Columbia, SC.  

 

For more information visit the BIA website - HERE

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South Carolina economy doing well. Strong broad-based, statewide expansion expected in 2016.

Home sales in the Charleston region are expected to remain strong in 2016, but growing at a slower pace than last year according to economist Dr. Joey Von Nessen, who delivered his outlook to a gathering of the Charleston Trident Association of Realtors on January 12th at Trident Technical College.

“2015 was another good year of solid growth,” he said. “We expect that to continue. South Carolina is doing well, and we are in a strong position going into 2016. Our expansion is strong, broad-based and statewide.”

Read the full article here.

JOSEPH VON NESSEN, Phd, TO PRESENT AT ASSA CONFERENCE IN SAN FRANCISCO

Dr. Joseph Von Nessen is presenting a research paper examining the effect of school quality on housing prices at the annual conference of the Allied Social Science Associations, which includes the American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association. The paper being presented used a specific statistical method to test the degree to which certain school quality measures are capitalized into housing prices in the Charleston, SC market and can be adapted to determine the effect most housing variables have on prices. 

Specifically, during the housing boom years (2001-2007) when the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation was in place, were homebuyers willing to pay a premium for houses zoned for high schools that received a "passing" NCLB rating - known as "adequate yearly progress?" The findings indicate that the answer is yes, and that the price premium was as high as 5%. 

This result represents a specific application of a more general modeling technique methodology to quantify how potential homebuyers value a wide variety of non-traded housing amenities (e.g., school quality, proximity to downtown, sidewalks, homeowner's associations, etc…). The process can be used by builders and developers to aid in a cost/benefit analysis when looking to decide on which features are most important to their potential customers.

New Home Sales Increase in August

New home sales are at their highest level since August 2008 - a strong starting point for the Fall season.  August's new, single-family homes are up 5.7% over July of this year and up 18% over August of last year.

The positive increase in sales is attributed to low interest rates and better job creation.

New home sales make up 10% of the housing market with the other 90% coming from existing home sales.

According to a survey by the National Association of Home Builders, builder sentiment is at its highest level nearly a decade - the highest since November 2005.  Builders reported better sales conditions and increased buyer traffic.

The median home price comes in at $292,700, an 0.3% increase from this time last year.

Experts estimate there is a 4.7 month supply of new homes still on the market. With concerns over a possible rate increase coming later this year - now is the time to buy!!