As a small business owner, we face challenges every single day. It’s always nice to see great news or interesting articles about our hometown city, so I thought this one was worthy of sharing with you on Your Smart Money Moves if you hadn’t seen it or saw a caption somewhere in your LinkedIn, Facebook, or Twitter feeds.
According to www.businessinsider.com, last year, truck rental giant Penske told us the No. 1 moving destination in America was Atlanta. The year before that, they told us the No. 1 moving destination in America was Atlanta. And the year before that. And now we learn that this year, everyone is … still moving to Atlanta.
People complain about a lot of things in Atlanta or sometimes affectionately called Hotlanta. They complain about the traffic. Now, I lived in Boston and Washington, DC where the traffic was way worse than the traffic here in Atlanta. And I think anyone who is from L.A. can attest to the fact that it is not even close. My advice is to quit whining about the traffic because more people moving here means more growth and more growth leads to more higher paying jobs, higher real estate prices, and new budding business enterprises. Some notable facts about Atlanta according to Penske (source www.businessinsider.com):
- Median household income: $46,146
- Average listing price: $244,000
- Average temperature in May: 79 degrees Fahrenheit
- Famous for: international sports, soft drinks, Georgia peaches (hmm . . . should be more like Chick-Fil-A, Waffle House, and Coca-Cola! Soft drinks . . . really??? I’m also not sure what international sports are going on here but perhaps they meant the Olympics and I haven’t seen anyone I know eat a Georgia peach since I moved here.)
Here’s the full list of the top 5 moving destinations in America for 2013 according to Penske, gathered from reservations data. The 2012 ranking in parentheses.
- Atlanta (1)
- Tampa, Fla./Sarasota, Fla. (new combined entry)
- Dallas/Fort Worth (2)
- Orlando, Fla. (4)
- Phoenix (3)
What’s the theme here? Finally, people are beginning to realize that it just doesn’t make sense to live in the cold! In all seriousness, what you are witnessing is the movement of more and more Fortune 500 companies moving to warmer states and following the scent of where the talent will be to fill positions within their companies. You’ll also notice that three of the five cities are located in states with ZERO state income tax and states like Georgia are becoming more tax friendly to retirees as well.
Look, any city you live in will have its flaws. You can say public transportation sucks in Atlanta. You can say that the sports fans are fair weathered at best. You can say it isn’t a walkable city. However, you can’t deny the fact that this is a GREAT place to live. Great weather (forget about these past two weeks). Easy access to lakes, mountains, city, and not a bad drive to the beach. Great growth in business especially in the technology sector. Easy to get tickets to games or concerts. Outstanding restaurant scene. And so much more. For those that are thinking about moving to Atlanta, I am glad that I did and proud to call Atlanta my hometown!
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/penske-2013-moving-survey-2014-1#ixzz2rRb7yD1V
Written by:
Ted Jenkin
Request a FREE consultation: www.oxygenfinancial.net
