Good news for our contractor community. In December, construction unemployment rates were down across 46 states. This was actually the country’s lowest rate of unemployment ever.
Compared to December 2016, the construction industry employed 250,000 more workers.
Why is this increase occurring? More work equals more employment. Unfortunately, a lot of the increases are due to natural disasters that happened in 2017 including hurricanes, floods, and wildfires. Contractors are needed all over the country.
There were 6 states with highest unemployment rates included New Mexico, Rhode Island, Alaska, Montana, Nevada, and Oregon. From lowest to highest, the top 5 states for construction unemployment rates were: Hawaii, Colorado, Massachusetts, Virginia, (Georgia, South Carolina and Texas tied for fifth).
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How is the career outlook looking for general contractors? On average, there’s supposed to be a 5 % job growth increase from now till 2024.
Construction spending is predicted to stay strong in 2018. According to ConstructConnect, the construction forecast for 2018 is a 4.8% increase. Commercial construction (offices, garages) is expected to grow 12.4% and continue to grow through 2021. Warehouses and factories is expected to decrease starting this year by 5.6%. Retail is expected to decline around 2.8% this year.
Overall construction spending for 2018 is expected to be a 2 to 7 % increase.
This is the time to get a job in contracting. The jobs are there because the work is there! Time to get into the field and make a name for yourself! If you’re ready to become a licensed Florida contractor, or start up a contractor business, we can help your through the licensure process to make that happen. When applying for a contractor license or business license, there’s a lot of paperwork and requirements. It can be confusing and stressful; there’s a lot of deadlines to remember. As a Florida contractor licensing company, we know the process like the back of our hand, because we’ve helped thousands of people get their Florida contractor’s license. To get started with us