Maryland Economic Outlook: Strong to Quite Strong

Marylanders have a lot to look forward to economically considering the financial stresses plaguing the majority of our country these days. The Columbia/Ellicott City area was ranked #2 (up from #8 in 2008) in this year’s CNNMoney.com ‘Best Places to Live’ report. Gaithersburg was ranked #25 and Rockville landed at #31. On top of that, Maryland is expected to close the fiscal 2010 budget with an excess $300 million budget surplus.

The unemployment rate is 7.1% as of July, compared to a national rate of 9.5%. These figures are likely to improve with continued development in the state and the intentions of the government to relocate loads of jobs and military to the area. Maryland is also attracting families due to its diverse make up. African Americans account for 17% and Asians represent 14% of the population.

Additional attractions to the area are in the works as well. The enormous 12-16 acre Troy Park Tennis & Sports Center is planned to have 29 courts (11 indoor). This spectacular facility will be located just off of Rt. 100 in the prestigious 21042 area code.

Maryland is also positioned to host the Baltimore Grand Prix for five years starting on Labor Day 2011. This Indy Racing League event is estimated to draw about 100,000 people and yield $11 million in city tax revenue directly. The same estimate anticipates an impact similar to the birth of 2,000 full-time jobs while sparking approximately a quarter of a billion dollars in local economy spending during the half of a decade which Baltimore will host the race. Click to see the current 2-mile course.

Most recently, a $30 million project was approved in Fed Hill despite the difficulty involved with obtaining real estate financing. Also worth mentioning is the impact of Intel purchasing McAfee which was announced last Thursday. T. Rowe Price, headquartered in Baltimore, experienced a $320 million increase in their holdings value for McAfee upon the announcement of Intels’ $7.7 billion purchase.

Maryland is looking great these days and current trends may indicate that the best has yet to come.