Worcester Business Journal

14 Worcester Business Journal | June 24, 2024 | wbjournal.com er economic stats, Staveley-O'Carroll said. "I looked at some data on inflation and unemployment and Boston, Worcester, and the Framingham area are doing quite well, and maybe even above national av- erage in terms of performance," she said. One area of the economy where business leaders are less optimistic is the manufacturing sector; AIM survey data from May showed manufacturers scored at 46, while non-manufacturing enterprises scored at 54.7. Despite less-than-optimistic sentiment from statewide manufacturers, North Central manufacturing firms are starting to see the light. "Manufacturing had a little bit of a downturn, but has climbed out of that," said Nascimento. "ere's a lot of de- mand for their products. ey're hiring. ey're continuing to expand." Problems with housing Despite the upturn, one issue contin- ues to impact Massachusetts employers and employees, both inside and outside of the manufacturing space: the region's persistent housing crisis. Worcester and Middlesex counties saw 3,415 single-family home sales from F O C U S M I DY E A R E C O N O M I C F O R E C AS T Refined, Renewed, and Refreshed This is history, hotel and home, redefined. Welcome to the Wellsworth Hotel Gracefully blending historic touches with a contemporary feel and resort-style amenities, the Wellsworth Hotel near Sturbridge, MA, is the ideal setting for work and leisure. 14 Mechanic Street, Southbridge, MA 01550 508-765-8000 | wellsworthhotel.com January to April, a slight 1.6% increase from the 3,361 seen during the same period last year, according to data from e Warren Group, a Peabody-based real estate research firm. However, prices for single-family homes consistently creep upward; the average median sales price for sin- gle-family homes from January through April was $440,000 for Worcester County and $810,000 for Middlesex County, increases of 7.3% and 11% compared to the same time period from last year. Renters aren't finding much relief either; an April study by Forbes Advisor, a financial news and information service in New Jersey, found Greater Worcester was the third-most competitive rental market it studied. Worcester had the second-lowest vacancy rate of examined areas, at 1.7%, with a median price of $1,995 per rental, almost $200 higher than the study's median price of $1,804. "When you ask employers what is the biggest challenge in the MetroWest region, the number one is housing costs," said Rosero, citing figures from a MERC study showing labor costs, which is an issue connected to rising housing costs, coming in second. "[Businesses] are having a hard time finding workers." e labor issue is a complicated one, but the cost and lack of availability of housing plays a role, Nascimento said. "I do think the housing issue just makes the labor issue worse, because our cost of living here is so much higher than other states," he said. "ere's not a lot of inventory out there. at's certainly part of the high cost of living that we have here in Massachusetts. e number one challenge we probably hear from employers is around finding qualified skilled workers. And that's moderated a little bit, but it's still a big concern." The vibecession Despite the fact many traditional indicators of the economy are looking positive, there's still talk of a vibeces- Continued from previous page Business confidence Every month, the Associated Industries of Massachusetts releases its business confidence index for the entire state, as well as regions like Central Massachusetts. The score is based on a survey of business leaders and ranges from 0-100, where a score above 50 represents optimism about the future outlook of the economy. Month Central Mass. index Statewide index October 2023 45.7 51.2 November 2023 49.6 51 December 2023 50 52.6 January 2024 50 53.5 February 2024 52.4 54.5 March 2024 51.9 52.2 April 2024 45.9 51.9 May 2024 50.6 53.3 Source: Associated Industries of Massachusetts

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