Experts Discuss Economic Outlook at Rancho Cordova Forum

Hosted by Rancho Cordova Chamber of Commerce Past President, Beth Walters, the Rancho Cordova Economic Forum began with a breakfast provided by How It’s Done Catering.  150 people filled the American River rooms, as updates about the breakout sessions were given. Attendees were invited to go on tours of City Hall, visit the future site of the Sacramento Children’s Museum, the SMUD SEED program, and a panel of experts will be discussing the new Rancho Cordova  Enterprise Zone immediately after the Forum.

The first speaker in the Economic Forum was Beverly Kendall of ReMax Gold; the topic: residential real estate. Reports that Kendall gave, show that home sales reached their lowest point in 2007 but climbed slowly in 2008 and 2009. Distressed Properties, or properties sold by forclosure or short sale, currently make up 66% of all home sales in Sacramento County. The good news is that people are buying more homes because the prices are good and the interest rates are low. Kendall predicts minimal changes in the local real estate outlook for 2010. She thinks we will see a slight increase in pricing, and a slim increase in interest rates.

Tammy Browning of Kelly Services discussed the Sacramento Employment Outlook. According to census studies, Rancho Cordova is predicted to grow to 100,000 by 2020. There was a 3% job growth loss rate in the last 3 months. The unemployment rate in the Sacramento region is expected to increase to 6% job growth loss in 2010. The sectors that are hiring are generally hiring well educated applicants, which is  creating increased enrollment in many colleges and universities.

Daniel M. Cole of The Evergreen Company discussed commercial real estate. Real estate prices in the commercial arena definitely mirror those in the residential. Though business might not be booming, real estate prices are low, and many businesses are taking this opportunity to invest in property. In the next two years Cole predicts that many big name companies will be downsizing and there will be plenty of affordable retail space for smaller businesses.

The City Economic Development Director, Curt Haven, discussed the economic outlook for Rancho Cordova. Business is expected to increase. The goal in Rancho Cordova is for a healthy balance between office space, residential, and industrial space. “There have been about 100 [building] permits approved since July”.  Haven, like many others is excited about the amount of growth in Rancho. In the next year, residents should expect updates in Rancho such as; Los Rios Community College, more improvements to Olson Island (the retail center on Olson that’s home to Target and Kohls) and further improvements to Folsom Blvd.What economic forum would be complete with out the professional opinion of a financial expert? Rancho Cordova Community members were able to hear from Kelly Brothers, the KCRA Money Expert to discuss the global economy and how this affects local residents. There is tremendous growth in other parts of the world. Starbucks and McDonalds and other major corporations are growing tremendously in Europe and China. American businesses are still growing. Brothers said the “stock market can be manic”. It’s not something we want to put our trust in, as it can get ahead of itself.

After the speakers covered their topics in depth, attendees were able to ask their burning questions and the speakers were to give brief answers. Besides wanting to know if President Obama is going to serve another term and when we will curb our dependency on oil, other questions pertained to local business incentives, the Rancho Cordova Enterprise Tax Zone, and the accelerated state income tax collection.

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Posted by Michelle Ventress on Nov 6 2009. Filed under Business, News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.