Every quarter, San Diego Regional EDC analyzes key economic indicators that are important to understanding the regional economy and the region’s standing relative to the 25 most populous metropolitan areas in the U.S. This issue covers data from Q4 2019.
As 2019 wraps up and the region continues to struggle with housing affordability, the number of annual building permits continues to decrease. In 2019, there were 8,082 building permits issued, with 3,023 single family permits and 5,059 multi-family permits. Annual building permits saw a 17.4 percent decrease from 2018 to 2019. Building permits have decreased annually since 2016.
Key findings from the snapshot:
San Diego’s unemployment rate continues to drop, at 2.8 percent in Q4
Total annual nonfarm employment increased by 34,800 jobs, or 2.3 percent from Q4 2018 to Q4 2019, led by 9,500 new jobs in the Professional and Business Services industry
The Trade, Transportation, and Utilities recorded the largest quarterly gain, adding 10,800 jobs, or 4.9 percent compared to Q3 2019
San Diego’s housing market was the second most expensive in the nation with the median home price at $655,000 in Q4, up annually by 4.6 percent
While annual building permits issued for 2019 were lower than 2018, Q4 2019 housing permits were greater than Q4 2018
San Diego saw 39 Venture Capital deals worth $655 million, primarily concentrated in the healthcare sector
Each month the California Employment Development Department (EDD) releases employment data for the prior month. This edition of San Diego’s Economic Pulse covers December 2019. Check out EDC’s research bureau for more data and stats about San Diego’s economy.
Highlights include:
The region’s unemployment rate was 2.8 percent in December 2019, down from a revised 2.9 percent in November 2019, and below the year-ago estimate of 3.1 percent
The region’s unemployment rate remains lower than both the state and national unemployment rates of 3.7 percent and 3.4 percent, respectively
Between November 2019 and December 2019, total nonfarm employment increased from 1,538,200 to 1,540,700, adding 2,500 jobs
Between December 2018 and December 2019, total nonfarm employment increased from 1,505,900 to 1,540,700, adding 34,800 jobs
Between December 2018 and December 2019, professional and business services led the year-over gain, adding 9,500 jobs and mostly driven by growth in professional, scientific, and technical services (up 7,500)
Each month the California Employment Development Department (EDD) releases employment data for the prior month. This edition of San Diego’s Economic Pulse covers November 2019. Check out EDC’s research bureau for more data and stats about San Diego’s economy.
The region’s unemployment rate was 2.9 percent in November, unchanged from a revised 2.9 percent in October 2019, and below the year-ago estimate of 3.1 percent
The region’s unemployment rate remains lower than both the state and national unemployment rates of 3.7 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively
Between October 2019 and November 2019, total nonfarm employment increased from 1,536,900 to 1,546,800, adding 9,900 jobs
Between November 2018 and November 2019, total nonfarm employment increased from 1,512,500 to 1,546,800, adding 34,300 jobs
Between November 2018 and November 2019, government led the year-over gain, adding 7,800 jobs and mostly driven by growth in local government (up 5,200)
Every quarter San Diego Regional EDC analyzes key economic indicators that are important to understanding the regional economy and the region’s standing relative to the 25 most populous metropolitan areas in the U.S. This issue covers data from Q3 2019.
Over half of the 24 most populous metros experience a decline in total nonfarm employment during Q3 from Q2, including San Diego. The region saw a decline of 2,200 jobs – a 0.1 percent decrease in total nonfarm employment from Q2 to Q3, primarily due to seasonal changes. On the other hand, compared to a year ago, nonfarm employment was up 30,600, or 2.1 percent.
Key findings from the snapshot:
San Diego’s unemployment continues to drop, at 2.7 percent in Q3
While there was a decrease in nonfarm employment from Q2 to Q3 2019 due to seasonal changes, annual nonfarm employment was up 30,600 jobs, or 2.1 percent compared to Q3 2018
San Diego’s housing market was the third most expensive in the nation, despite home prices decreasing in Q3 both quarterly and annually
Housing permits increased substantially year-over-year in San Diego, largely due to multi-family housing permits increasing by nearly 133 percent
Overall, total housing permits increased nearly 68 percent compared to a year ago
San Diego saw 34 VC deals worth $707 million
Quarterly Economic Snapshot analyzes key economic indicators that are important to understanding the regional economy and the region’s standing relative to the 25 most populous metropolitan areas in the U.S. This releases includes data from July to September (Q3) 2019.
Each month the California Employment Development Department (EDD) releases employment data for the prior month. This edition of San Diego’s Economic Pulse covers October 2019. Check out EDC’s research bureau for more data and stats about San Diego’s economy.
The region’s unemployment rate was 2.8 percent in October, up from a revised 2.7 percent in September 2019, and below the year-ago estimate of 3.2 percent
The region’s unemployment rate remains lower than both the state and national unemployment rates of 3.7 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively
Between September 2019 and October 2019, total nonfarm employment increased from 1,516,200 to 1,525,000, adding 9,400 jobs
Between October 2018 and October 2019, total nonfarm employment increased from 1,495,400 to 1,525,600, adding 30,200 jobs
Between October 2018 and October 2019, government led the year-over gain, adding 8,200 jobs and mostly driven by growth in local government (up 5,100)
The growth of San Diego’s innovation economy has made the region better educated and more prosperous than most other metros. However, this economic transformation presents new challenges for future growth. Changing skill requirements, a nationwide battle for talent, and a soaring cost of living are combining to form an unequivocal threat to our regional competitiveness. If unaddressed, San Diego will no longer be an attractive place to live and do business.
San Diego depends on a highly-educated workforce. However, talent shortages are likely to grow as demand for new skills accelerates and demographic gaps in educational attainment persist. The lack of quality jobs and a high cost of living further impact talent attraction and retention. For the region to remain competitive, an inclusive economic development strategy is needed. As part of San Diego’s Inclusive Growth Initiative, this research was produced by San Diego Regional EDC.
From December 2018 and January 2019, the San Diego Small Business Lending Collaborative surveyed 129 existing and 101 prospective business owners in three San Diego Promise Zone zip codes (92102, 92113 and 92114). The purpose of the survey was to identify barriers for small business establishment and growth within the San Diego Promise Zone, a geographic area comprising of Barrio Logan, Southeastern San Diego, and Encanto. Historically disadvantaged, the culturally rich communities within the San Diego Promise Zone possess unique barriers that inhibit economic growth.
The study, written by the San Diego Regional EDC, found that the biggest challenge business owners face is related to credit/financing. Only 12 percent of business owners have ever applied for business financing, and out of those who have, they found only expensive options or were declined due to bad credit or income requirements. The final report outlines recommendations and strategies for small business owners in the San Diego Promise Zone to overcome these obstacles and grow their companies. For example, expanding access to entrepreneurship training and accelerator programs for low to moderate income populations.
In an effort to address San Diego’s soaring cost of living, San Diego Regional EDC and its Inclusive Growth Steering Committee of 40 employers officially endorsed a regional goal to create 75,000 newly thriving households by 2030. Driven by the findings in EDC’s latest study release, this regional goal and accompanying set of recommendations aim to address key factors (housing, transportation and childcare) impacting San Diego’s affordability crisis – the last of three main goals of a regional Inclusive Growth agenda.
Each month the California Employment Development Department (EDD) releases employment data for the prior month. This edition of San Diego’s Economic Pulse covers August 2019. Check out EDC’s research bureau for more data and stats about San Diego’s economy.
The region’s unemployment rate was 3.4 percent in August, down from a revised 3.6 percent in July 2019, and below the year-ago estimate of 3.5 percent..
The region’s unemployment rate remains lower than both the state and national unemployment rates of 4.2 percent and 3.8 percent, respectively
Construction (up 2,900) added the largest number of jobs over the month, with gains centered in speciality trade contractors(up 1,800)
Between August 2018 and August 2019, total nonfarm employment increased from 1,485,300 to 1,512,700, adding 27,400 jobs.
Government (up 8,400) followed by professional & business services(up 6,600) led job growth during the past year
San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation released a study— Qualcomm’s Contribution to San Diego’s Economy, showcasing how the company’s investment in the community has impacted the industry, economy and region as a whole. Since its humble beginning in 1985, Qualcomm has been at the forefront of innovation, entrepreneurship and research and development (R&D.) It settled with a home base in San Diego, providing a significant economic impact and tremendous contributions to our region since its founding.
Qualcomm is not only a technology industry leader in our region; it also engages the marketing, accounting, legal services, consulting, environmental and engineering industries in San Diego, in-turn creating jobs and opportunities along every step of the company’s tech journey. Just in 2018, Qualcomm had an economic impact of approximately $4 billion in the San Diego economy. To put that into perspective, it’s the equivalent of 41 Breeder’s Cup World Championships, 27 San Diego Comic-Cons and 3.6 San Diego Convention Centers.
Further, in 2018, Qualcomm created approximately 1,600 job postings, recruiting top-tier entrepreneurial talent while continuing to dedicate resources to strengthening our communities and educating the next generation. To its core, Qualcomm understands the importance of investing in the workforce of tomorrow. They have done just that through an interactive tutorial program called Thinkabit Labs, which engages students from different backgrounds and inspires them to be the next generation of inventors – combining science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) for an educational and hands-on learning experience. Through Thinkabit, students mature by learning real-world problem-solving skills, collaborate in teams and motivate creativity on a myriad of levels. Qualcomm has hosted students from 107 schools across San Diego, inspired close to 22,000 local students and helped them create more than 5,000 inventions. Over the course of this program, Qualcomm has expanded and collaborated with 20 school districts and organizations.
Just as Qualcomm has invested into our youth, it has equally invested into our local communities. Since 2000, Qualcomm has donated more than $355 million to the San Diego community from both Qualcomm and the Qualcomm Foundation. Just in the last five years, Qualcomm employees have donated to more than 1,000 local organizations, requested matches for more than 17,900 organization and contributed more than $26 million to local communities. Qualcomm truly is a trailblazer for local philanthropy.
Many people think of Silicon Valley as the premier technology hub in America, however Qualcomm is working tirelessly to bring that title to San Diego. It’s no secret that Qualcomm is one of the leaders in 5G and also a premiere leader in creating technology the world loves. More than 130,000 patents and patent applications have come from Qualcomm in the past year. While it couldn’t have been done without our San Diegans, this type of technology and innovation is something that should be celebrated. Roughly 12 percent of the region’s total tech talent is employed by Qualcomm. To break down the impact on local jobs, Qualcomm has created: 10,170 induced jobs, which come from the result of local spending of labor income; 7,680 indirect jobs, the effect of local, inter-industry or B2B spending through existing economic structure; and 10,030 Qualcomm employees, which all adds up to an outstanding 27,880 total jobs. Because of this, for every job at Qualcomm, an additional 1.8 jobs are supported elsewhere in the San Diego economy. It truly is the job multiplier – integrating other companies and industries to provide support and collaboration that leads to industry-leading technology.
Our economic study “Qualcomm’s Contribution to San Diego’s Economy” shows some of the great contributions that Qualcomm has given to the San Diego region, but it wouldn’t be possible without the people. Thank you to the communities, employees and organizations that are helping build San Diego.
