So where is the economy in your local area now.

[kootenay]

Often we listen to the news and it treats everything with such a broad brush that often our opinions are affected by how things are somewhere else and ignore what it really is like locally. I just thought it would be interesting to see what individuals see in their local area.

First the big picture up here.

“Canadian households have escaped much of the negative wealth effect that was experienced in the U.S. due to falling real estate price and, of course, falling stock market prices,” said Jim Stanford, economist for the Canadian Auto Workers union. “In Canada, real estate prices did not significantly decline, and the stock market has come back most of the way."

How Canadian wealth rebounded - The Globe and Mail

My local area Southeastern BC

Our area is very dependant on Forestry and agriculture. Both have been hit hard by the rise in our dollar and the forestry sector has been hammered by the decline in the US markets. A big crop which I am involved with is Cherries and has been doubly hit as most of our product is exported to Europe so the dollar and the recession has hit us but we are still making money. Unemployment isnt suprisingly very high and I find it so difficult to get workers on the farm and am considering importing Mexicans under a federal agreement. The oil industry sucks up anyone with half a brain and a strong back and at 70 bucks its doing not bad at all.

The real estate business dropped a bit as the fear affected buyers keeping them out of the market last fall. Since spring however it is going very well with some sales records being set due to the low interest rates. In Vancouver their are reports of condos being in great demand. Roadside sales have been pretty good as the traffic this past summer seemed heavier than usual. Dont know why but perhaps people were doing more local vacations.

As a summary it isnt too bad around here with the exception of the forest industry but it was in trouble before the recession with the soft wood lumber dispute screwing it.

Hope its improving in your area and you all have a Merry Christmas.

Bill

[Architeuthis]

On Vancouver Island my wife has yet to find work in her field. The government is one of the main employers and they are cutting back all over the place to pay for the Olympics. So some sections are really hurting.

I know it isn't really bad because I still see help wanted signs. You did not see those in the early 1980's as the company would get swamped by applicants. Hundreds of people would line up for a minimum wage job....I know I often did.

In Edmonton and Fort McMurray it seems like the only people that felt it were those in declining industries, like those silly guys that still drill for oil in AB, or those with limited skills or qualifications. Fort McMurray particularly, housing prices continued to go up even as projects were deferred. Too bad as I could get work there and if housing prices had fallen as hard as CBC suggested I would have moved back.

So should be a Merry Christimas for most.

[canadianseamonkey]

Here in Sudbury Ontario we are keeping our own eventhough we are mostly a mining town. We are into month 5 of the Vale Inco strike, which sees no end. Xstrata's contract is up in February and we are all hoping that they come to an agreement. Overall, house prices have dropped a bit and became "normal", some jobs have been lost due to the stike affect, but most people are doing very well, spending money and keeping the economy going.

[scottyt]

i am in maryland, in baltimore to be more exact.

Jobs here are not bad i you are in the right fields. i am a master electrician, i have been looking or 2 years. here in maryland i used to see 15 to 20 wanted ads for electricians a week in the paper now it is 1 or 2. the jobs not connected to the credit industry or to working for the middle class ( ie retail or home improvement type jobs ) are okay. but the construction industry is so dependent on loans its pathetic.

also based on the sky high auto ins i cant even afford to ins my car right now, so thats even more limiting on jobs for me. as a baltimore city resident my car ins, sense i have not had non stop ins for a year would be 250 a month for liability only, coming down about 20 % year once i got ins. combine that with my wife being a full time student which we are paying a bunch of out of pocket, and her being a diabetic with no ins, money is tight. if i got a job tomorrow i would have ins so i could drive to it, but i have heard i am over qualified for every job that does not want master electrician. i even went so far as to a second version of my resume, not stating my license.

right now for me to get a job as a sparky i would have to basicly replace an employee the company already has

the saving grace is a friend who is self employed doing home improvement work. he has basicly cut his income in half by employing me, to the tune of about 350 to 400 a week cash but some weeks are only 150 to 200. but for the average of working 3 days a week 5 hours a day i guess i cant complain too much. its pretty sad last year he made 50 k take home, this year he wont break 25k probably closer to 20k.

okay the weather helm went real far of course in my reply, but i guess i needed to vent/talk about it.

[kootenay]

No Scotty I think any of us are will ing to listen. I hope things get better on the job front. Is there some kind of barrier to you simply putting your shingle out and operating your own 1 man business? I'd hire you especially if I wasnt paying 75 dollar shop rates or what ever it is in your area. Most of the electricians in our area are all individual entrepenures and they can under bid the big companies any day.

One big asset for me hiring an electrician is getting a quote that somewhat resembles the final result. that means the electrician anticipating all of the issues. I have had real good guys part way through a job realize that there are other issues quite honestly. With a bit more prep time thinking about the quote they could have anticipated every change order.

Good Luck

[scottyt]

well when it come to big commercial work i dont have the tools but i did do residential and light commercial. i did have my own company years ago, but my wife got diagnosed with diabetes so i got a real job that had ins. i was an estimator for a company years ago so i know how to do it and i always stuck to my estimates, unless there was a change. actually i always put an extra 10 % on my bids for unseen stuff and if i did not need the extra 10 % i returned it. that made a lot of happy customers.

the problem with my own company was the same as any other, in 18 months of having the company i wrote about 500k of estimates that never paned out. most people never think they are going to pay anywhere near what the real cost is. most people think "wow i would love to have 8 recessed light in my living room" then when they find out its 600 bucks ( material included ) then they need to fix the drywall and then paint they change their mind. i also did free est and basicly spent 2 days a week writing them for free

as for getting a job for the ins end for the wife she was a patient of university hospital's diabetes unit. they see her twice a year for 100 bucks cash each visit now, they billed my insurance 350 plus lab work before every 3 month visit. so if i got a job it would cost me more due to no reported income. now her meds where a cash thing before and her mother works there so we get a discount, but its still about 200 a month in meds. i dont need to try for welfare or medicare as i dont believe in it and i dont really need it

i basicly am self employed now, as my friend is doing much more electric work, which is why we split it 50 50. there is just not enough work going around to make more

[jrd22]

I'm in NW Washington state. It seems like the hardest hit are the building trades, construction has all but dried up in many areas. Both my sons are builders/carpenters/developers and they are struggling to keep busy. Everyone they know is in a building trade and NO ONE is working right now. Residential framing was going for $15-18 sq. ft. and now you can have it done for $6. My oldest son ran an ad for an experienced journey level carpenter on Craigslist and had over 20 calls within an hour and hired an excellent guy for $15 hr cash and could have hired good people for $12. Rough times right now for them. In general, excluding construction, it seems that the local economy is doing OK, very few stores closed up, housing prices have dropped about 30%+- from the peak I would guess. People that still have their jobs are doing fine as the cost of many things has come down, the unemployed are having a very difficult time finding work and I feel for them (been there).

[JiffyLube]

Originally Posted by jrd22

I'm in NW Washington state. It seems like the hardest hit are the building trades, construction has all but dried up in many areas. Both my sons are builders/carpenters/developers and they are struggling to keep busy. Everyone they know is in a building trade and NO ONE is working right now. Residential framing was going for $15-18 sq. ft. and now you can have it done for $6. My oldest son ran an ad for an experienced journey level carpenter on Craigslist and had over 20 calls within an hour and hired an excellent guy for $15 hr cash and could have hired good people for $12. Rough times right now for them. In general, excluding construction, it seems that the local economy is doing OK, very few stores closed up, housing prices have dropped about 30%+- from the peak I would guess. People that still have their jobs are doing fine as the cost of many things has come down, the unemployed are having a very difficult time finding work and I feel for them (been there).

It's just about the same here in San Diego, Calilfornia.

[Dirtboy]

I'm in Florida and work at a motorcycle/watercraft/jet boat dealership. Sales are off 70%. We are in "survival mode" working with less than half the employees we had two years ago. The service department is the only area coming close to making a profit but we've cut from 20 Techs to 12. It's normal for us to slow this time of year as watercraft don't sell well in the cooler months.

The most expensive items we sell, jet boats, are still selling well but motorcycles and watercraft are way off.

DB

[patrickrea]

Here in Toronto, in depends on what sector you are in. Contractors are not as busy but housing sales are brisk and prices have rebounded without the ridiculous bidding wars. My Mother in Law just recently sold her house in 1 day for her asking. Back in April, my father sold his house in 5 days after 37 viewings for 10% over his asking.

Last winter, one of my customers had a few jobs; part-time bartender at a fancy restaurant downtown, real eastate agent, and rent-a-goalie (yes they do exist). He said that he made more money as goalie than the other 2 jobs combined.