Housing and Job Boom....AGAIN

An article in the http://www.nwfdailynews.com this morning indicates we in the Fort Walton Beach/Destin/Crestview/Niceville area are about to experience a second housing and job boom beginning as soon as first quarter 2006. The Haas Center for Business Research and Economic Development at the University of West Florida has recently completed a study and found that, "more than 5,700 military and civilian defense workers will be added to the local workforce, with members of their families potentially available for work in the community. The Haas Center foresees more than 14,000 jobs being created by 2011." That is a significant increase in sheer population numbers for our area. Local business leaders have stated that total increase in population over the next 3 years should be anywhere in the 15-18 thousand range. This is in large part to the Base Realignment and Closure Commissions (BRAC) decision to increase the number of missions and duties assigned to Hurlburt Field Air Force Base and Eglin Air Force Base. Recently we have experienced a relative slow down in the real estate market after a 2 year span of rapid increases in real estate values and purchases. However according to these new findings the current slow down is going to be short lived. Look for areas such as Crestview, Holt, Mossy Head, and Defuniak Springs to see rapid growth and expansion!!!