Tacoma, Washington, leaps to 8th place, moving up from last year’s ranking of 50th. The area has enjoyed stable employment growth, coming in slightly above 3.0 percent for the period measured in our five-year indicator. Although its housing and business costs are close to the national average, they are inexpensive relative to nearby Seattle. Low housing costs have attracted many young families, including professionals who work in Seattle. As more professionals move into the area, firms have opened offices to tap into the labor pool. For example, Intel employs 1,100 in the metro division. Data processing, hosting, and related services enjoyed average annual job growth of 17.2 percent over the past five years.International trade plays an important role in the area’s economy as well. The Port of Tacoma specializes in inbound containers from Asia and has benefited from capacity constraints at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. Its largest exports are wood products and apples. The industry category of support activities for transportation has the highest concentration of employment in the metro economy, and many other transportation-related categories rank among the leaders.
The military also has a large presence in the Tacoma economy. The U.S. Army base at Fort Lewis is the largest employer, with 37,000 soldiers and workers; along with McChord Air Force Base, it provides a steady source of demand. Aslowdown in construction activity will curtail growth in the local economy, but nevertheless, Tacoma should remain among the best performers in the country.
