How is the local economy in Houston? I hope to move to Houston soon and am wondering how hard it will be to find a job there with a bachelor of science degree and a masters degree. thanks everyone!
Sorry to break the news, but it's terrible right now. Worse than a lot of other major cities with the stuff that's going on nationally plus tons of jobs lost at Enron, Continental Airlines, etc. Good luck to you.
I've actually heard about that but was wondering if it was true. I heard about that on comedy central during one of Lewis Black's stand up routines.
Why not work for the government (federal/state/municipal)? Or rebuilding Iraq with the military? Or go the Kennedy School of Government( I remember they sent me a ton of fliers in college and I considered going and I was an Electrical Engineering major)
The economy is fine. People always scream about how terrible it is but I think they are full of crap. This coming from a guy that got laid off in November. Gas is cheaper here than anywhere. All of the retail stores are packed as hell. Got to a WalMart on Saturday and tell me the economy is bad. Go to a mall on a Friday and tell me the economy is bad. Home sales are steady. Bonuses are good. Lawn crews are slammed on weekends. It's all good. Come on over.
I would disagree with this statement. Houston has been largely shielded from the high tech bust that other cities are struggling with. The oil and gas industry (the electric power sector notwithstanding) have maintained some sense of stability with the local economy. We're hurting like everybody else, but not worse than other cities.
errrr....Chance is just trying to get the contract to write the new "Houston We Love You" song, so excuse his rose colored glasses. Either that or he's rewriting the 2003 version of "Duck and Cover" The economy is wacked. Hell, even Bush will agree with you on this one. Thats why he's stepped away from Iraq to focus on the economy 24-7. Things are bleak and the administration is going full throttle to try to fix it. Trust me on this one, my dad is a Bush appointee and works for the US Treasury - he was in town this weekend and its pretty much all he talked about. However he is confident that his bosses have a good plan in motion. Bonuses were not good. I have buddies in the energy business, corporate real estate, law, and transportation (Continental), and bonuses this year SUCKED. Personally, in my industry we went from 70-100% bonuses to close to 20-30%. And some companies suspended bonuses completely. Stock options? Maybe next year. I have an insane number of coworkers who have adult children living at home. Many are unemployed. I have a large number of friends with masters degrees who can't get a job because they are overqualified. Those who have found jobs after being laid off are forced to take contract gigs so they have no benefits. I will agree with Chance on the lawn crews....thank god for cheap illegal labor. My bud is a landscaper and he still manages to sell a project about once a week. But its all really loaded folk. Personally, I am happy to have a job, and my life (knock on wood) is pretty much unchanged. But the economy is NOT FINE.
And while your at it, Chance, please pass the bong this way. If you think the economy in Houston is fine, I want some of what you are smoking!
I think what he was saying was that comparatively it's not worse than anywhere else in the country...obviously the nation is in a down-economic cycle right now.
Chance is right that Houston wasn't hit as hard as some cities by the internet bust, but he's absolutely wrong that we haven't been hit hard. In addition to the problems the rest of the country's having, we've had Enron (which had an incredible ripple effect on the job market), Allison, Continental (which is hanging on by a thread) and all the businesses who are effected by the Enron bust. Real estate's selling because it's considered a safe investment -- plus prices are way down on account of the bad national and local economy. Spin it all you want. A full Wal-Mart isn't exactly a scientific indicator. Philanthropy is also WAY down in Houston. Foundations in Houston do an incredible job of supporting various non-profit groups in town and they've been hit so hard by the stock market that they've drastically cut funding across the board. This is a case when the cause (stock market) is having an outsized effect here in Houston, where our reliance on foundations to feed sectors of the economy is greater than in other cities.
On the contrary, a full Walmart just means that everyone's so broke they have to buy Chinese over 'crafted with pride in the USA'
Here's some data, so you can decide for yourself: http://www.houston.org/houstonseconomy/keyeconomic.htm
If it's bad in Houston, it's horrible in Austin. Hearing about grad students unemployed makes me feel ok in a way; at least it's not just me. I'm an apartment locator right now, and while it's been good, I just don't like it.
