By Kate Lorenz, CareerBuilder.com Editor
When you're looking to buy a home, it's all about location, location, location. And one of the biggest factors consumers consider when deciding on a new hometown is the health of the area's employment. Whether you're moving cross country or a just a few towns over, it's important to know if you'll find a job easily once you get there.
Every month, the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics releases the nation's unemployment numbers. In 2006, the national average has hovered around 4.7 percent. But do you really know what that means for you?
If there is low unemployment in your area, then the jobs are ripe for the picking -- it's a job seeker's market. But if the unemployment numbers are higher than the national average, chances are it will take you longer to find a job.
Consider this: The unemployment rate is 11.6 percent in Gulfport-Biloxi, Miss., which is still recovering from Hurricane Katrina. But just 160 miles east along the Gulf of Mexico in Fort Walton Beach, Fla., the unemployment rate is just 2.7 percent.
If you want to live where the jobs are plentiful, you should make sure you've done your research. Luckily, we've done some of that for you. Out of 367 metro areas in the United States, here are the 20 with the lowest -- and the 20 with the highest -- unemployment rates:
20 U.S Cities With the Lowest Unemployment Rates
Average: 2.9
1.
Fargo, N.D.: 2.1
2.
Casper, Wyo.: 2.4
3.
Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, La..: 2.5
3.
Lafayette, La..: 2.5
3.
Sioux Falls, S.D.: 2.5
6.
Ames, Iowa: 2.6
6.
Bismarck, N.D. 2.6
8.
Fort Walton Beach-Crestview-Destin, Fla.: 2.7
8.
Idaho Falls, Idaho: 2.7
8.
Iowa City, Iowa: 2.7
11.
Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Fla.: 2.8
11.
Charlottesville, Va.: 2.8
11.
Harrisonburg, Va.: 2.8
11.
Rapid City, SD: 2.8
11.
Sarasota-Bradenton-Venice, Fla.: 2.8
11.
St. George, Utah: 2.8
11.
Winchester, Va.: 2.8
18.
Billings, Mont. 2.9
18.
Boise City-Nampa, Idaho: 2.9
20.
Des Moines-West Des Moines, Iowa: 3
20.
Lake Charles, La.: 3
20.
Logan, Utah: 3
20.
Missoula, Mont.: 3
20 U.S. Cities With the Highest Unemployment Rates Average: 9.7
20.
McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Texas: 7.8
20.
Muskegon-Norton Shores, Mich.: 7.8
16.
Battle Creek, Mich.: 7.9
16.
Hanford-Corcoran, Calif.: 7.9
16.
Modesto, Calif.: 7.9
16.
Niles-Benton Harbor, Mich.: 7.9
14.
Jackson, Mich.: 8
14.
Sumter, S.C.: 8
13.
Detroit-Warren-Livonia, Mich.: 8.1
12.
Yuba City, Calif.: 8.2
11.
Visalia-Porterville, Calif.: 8.4
10.
Monroe, Mich.: 8.5
9.
Pine Bluff, Ark.: 8.6
8.
Saginaw-Saginaw Township North, Mich.: 8.7
7.
Kokomo, Ind.: 8.9
6.
Merced, Calif.: 9.2
5.
Pascagoula, Miss.: 9.4
4.
Flint, Mich.: 10
3.
Gulfport-Biloxi, Miss.: 11.6
2.
El Centro, Calif.: 17.3
1.
Yuma, Ariz.:21.4
Mar 6th 2009 @ 10:41AM travis
when no one has a job and can't travel you will being worrying about it! Hello what a useless piece of information if no one can afford your services or you lose your business and have to look for a job you'll be eating your words!
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Mar 31st 2009 @ 12:04PM JIM
All the comments above are why we are at this low. GREED and LIES.
Reply
Apr 15th 2009 @ 6:58PM stephanie
amen to that!
May 26th 2009 @ 12:55AM joe
amen brother
Reply
Oct 23rd 2009 @ 11:09AM alex
Greed? Can you define (GREED) Of course this is why we need to Government to run our lives, businesses and every other facet of your day to day activities. They already educate your children (not mine) and what a poor quality this is performed at. If you can not take care of yourself then please go some where that the government will take of you. I am tiered of paying for all of these lazy people who are too good for the jobs that are out there. You are crazy if you believe that there are no job opportunities out there. Go throw some papers, fast food… Do something
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