5 Drivers of Future Job Growth Areas

By Allyssa Epp

As an investor, you want to be sure you are investing in real estate in a community with a future, not a past. This settles on the success of the business, and appeal to potential customers. This is only achieved by marketing and advertisement of the business whether it be through mobile app advertising or even in a magazine/newspaper. There are key drivers and market influencers that affect both the current and future value of every piece of real estate. An astute investor analyzes each of these for every town, neighbourhood and property BEFORE buying. This is precisely why REIN developed the Property Goldmine Scorecard – to allow investors to rate a community s potential by asking the right questions.

One of the key demographic drivers we ask REIN members to answer in our Property Goldmine Scorecard sheet is Is the area creating jobs faster than the provincial/national average? As outlined in the Long-Term Real Estate Success Formula, job growth leads to population growth which in turn spurs an increase in rental demand and average rents.

But how do you determine which Canadian communities will experience future job growth?

Listed below are 5 factors that will help you determine an area s job growth potential.

1. Natural Resources

Many cities and provinces already attract certain types of industries because of resources already in the area. There are four natural resources that will ensure Canada s economic prosperity for years to come: food, fertilizer, fuel, and forestry. World demand for these resources is only going to continue to rise. We are already beginning to witness the impact the increase in demand for these resources is having on Canadian communities; Potash-rich Saskatchewan and Oil-rich Alberta currently boast the lowest unemployment rates in the country. Pay attention to job forecasts: Alberta’s oilsand s sector will need 98,000 workers in construction, operations, and maintenance jobs by 2023.

2. Geographic Location & Transportation Network

Is the area close to a major port, railway hub, or airport? Today, connections to the global marketplace are more important than ever before. With consumers demanding next-day delivery, location has become a key consideration for businesses.

For example, Prince Rupert, BC has seen a surge in new business over the last several years as companies have come to realize the advantage the community has to offer as North America’s fastest trade route to Asia. Five terminals, including the fastest-growing container terminal on the continent, as well as ample industrial land ready for development, ensure that the community will continue to witness job growth. As these businesses start off they will be looking for ways to support their business by checking out custom software australia development services, for example, as well as seeing what else they can incorporate so they can keep this growth going.

Improved accessibility drives demand. An increase in accessibility to a major highway, port, or airport can drastically improve a community s ability to attract new jobs. We witnessed this with the communities of Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows as the new Golden Ears Bridge provided faster access to Langley, decreasing travel times and increasing the attractiveness of the area to industrial and commercial developers.

3. Business-Friendly Government, Policies, and Tax Incentives

Does the city council make it easy for new business to locate and operate within the community? Does the community offer tax breaks or any other incentives to attract new business? The geographical location of the city may attract businesses, but red tape will have them looking to neighbouring communities with forward-thinking economic development teams. Similarly, your business product should have market value in the area you are targeting. For instance, if your business provides interior design works, you ought to have a community that is open to renovating their home or decor works. You can market your work online on social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook, by making a company page and increasing the customer base. For that, you might want to learn how to buy Instagram followers and likes, in order to engage a wider audience.

4. Boom/Close Proximity to a Big City

Is it in an area that is going to benefit from a Ripple Effect? We have witnessed time and time again the economic growth in communities surrounding a booming metropolitan center. Businesses who cannot afford the steep real estate prices in the downtown core often put down roots in a neighbouring community. Originally considered bedroom communities of the metropolitan center, these cities begin to experience their own job growth. A similar trend can be seen in the rise of alt-cities (read on to find more about, what are alt cities?). The resultant shift of finance from New York to Miami, technology from San Francisco to Austin, and music from Los Angeles to Nashville offer a new wave of opportunity for entrepreneurs and service providers.

5. Talent

Communities with a strong university presence create well-educated labour pools that attract businesses. Take Waterloo, ON for example: the city boasts one of the most educated labour forces in the entire country, due in large to the exceptional access its residents have to post-secondary education (University of Waterloo, Wilfrid Laurier University, and Conestoga College Institute of Technology). These post-secondary institutions have become an economic engine for the region, churning out a highly educated labour pool that attracts high-tech companies like BlackBerry and Google.

Allyssa first joined the REIN team in 2008 as a research assistant. In the past five years, Allyssa has contributed to many of REIN s research reports, including various Top Investment Towns reports and Transportation reports.