Looking for a business location in the Southwest?
You’re not alone. Arizona, Nevada and New Mexico all are reaping rewards from diversifying their economies and, to varying degrees, adopting policies friendly to businesses large and small.
What follows should serve as a guide to the region’s top locations, complete with comments from two leading site selectors: Chris Lloyd of Virginia-based McGuire Woods Consulting and Jim Renzas of The RSH Group, who’s based in Mountain View, California.
| 2018 POPULATION: | 1,660,272 (+25,288, or 1.5%) |
| KEY SECTORS: | Financial services, aerospace, distribution, healthcare, data centers |
| COST OF LIVING INDEX: | 113.4* |
| 2019 MEDIAN HOME PRICE: | $246,000 (up 4.6%) |
| ELECTRICITY: | $11.96/kWh (residential) $6.53/kWh (industrial) |
| AIRPORT: | Phoenix Sky Harbor Intl, 5 miles (8 km.) from city center; direct flights to 130 destinations |
| ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: | Greater Phoenix Economic Council |
| THE GOOD: | Nation’s third-fastest growing economy |
| THE CHALLENGE: | Managing rapid growth |
| WHAT THEY SAY: | |
| “Phoenix was overly dependent on services and construction and they got whacked in the last recession. The key story now is around diversification of their economy, and I think they’re succeeding.” — Chris Lloyd |
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| “The business climate is dramatically improved in the last five years. The west side is great for distribution centers to serve the California market. For general manufacturing, Phoenix is a bit pricey compared to what some of the alternatives might be.” — Jim Renzas |
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| *Cost of living indices from Sperling’s Best Places from a baseline of 100 | |
| 2018 POPULATION: | 545,975 (+4,196, or 0.77%) |
| KEY SECTORS: | Aerospace, automotive, shared services, corporate headquarters |
| COST OF LIVING INDEX: | 99.4 |
| 2019 MEDIAN HOME PRICE: | $194,100 (up 5.3%) |
| ELECTRICITY: | $10.15/kWh (residential) $7.22/kWh (industrial) |
| AIRPORT: | Tucson International, 8 miles (13 km.) from city center; direct flights to 20 destinations |
| ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: | Sun Corridor INC |
| THE GOOD: | Cheaper alternative to Phoenix |
| THE CHALLENGE: | High poverty rate |
| WHAT THEY SAY: | |
| “Tucson is more of a secondary market, and that’s not a knock on it. They understand what their value proposition is and they’re succeeding. The investment that’s going on downtown is phenomenal.” — Chris Lloyd |
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| “Tucson is the affordable alternative to Phoenix. Great workforce, huge university and a good place to look if you’re talking manufacturing.” — Jim Renzas |
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| ALTERNATIVE ARIZONA LOCATIONS: | Casa Grande, Flagstaff, Prescott |
| 2018 POPULATION: | 644,644 (+9.106, or 1.4%) |
| KEY SECTORS: | Hospitality, manufacturing, distribution, technology, data centers |
| COST OF LIVING INDEX: | 119.9 |
| 2019 MEDIAN HOME PRICE: | $273,800 (up 1.8%) |
| ELECTRICITY: | $12.15/kWh (residential) $7.56/kWh (industrial) |
| AIRPORT: | McCarran International, 7 miles (11 km.) from city center; direct flights to 150 destinations |
| ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: | Las Vegas Global Economic Alliance |
| THE GOOD: | Tax friendliness |
| THE CHALLENGE: | Land and labor costs |
| WHAT THEY SAY: | |
| “They’re making great progress toward being seen as a city that people want to live in and not just visit.” — Chris Lloyd |
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| “There’s a lot of money there and it tends to drive up costs for real estate and for labor.” — Jim Renzas |
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| 2018 POPULATION: | 250,998 (+9,016, or 3.5%) |
| KEY SECTORS: | Technology, distribution, financial services, manufacturing, energy |
| COST OF LIVING INDEX: | 127.0 |
| 2019 MEDIAN HOME PRICE: | $371,900 (up 3%) |
| ELECTRICITY: | $11.05/kWh (residential) $4.26/kWh (industrial) |
| AIRPORT: | Reno-Tahoe International, 5miles (8 km.) from city center; direct flights to 22 destinations |
| ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: | Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada |
| THE GOOD: | Proximity to California market |
| THE CHALLENGE: | Housing shortage |
| WHAT THEY SAY: | |
| “Being only three hours from the Bay Area makes Reno an interesting play.” — Chris Lloyd |
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| “The tech sector is going crazy. It’s getting difficult to find buildings and there’s pressure on the labor market because so many companies realize that it’s great alternative to Sacramento and Bay Area.” — Jim Renzas |
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| ALTERNATIVE NEVADA LOCATIONS: | Fernley, Fallon, Carson City |
| 2018 POPULATION: | 560,218 (+107, or .04%) |
| KEY SECTORS: | Film, technology, manufacturing, call centers, renewable energy |
| COST OF LIVING INDEX: | 98.3 |
| 2019 MEDIAN HOME PRICE: | $205,200 (up 4.2%) |
| ELECTRICITY: | $12.31/kWh (residential) $5.87/kWh (industrial) |
| AIRPORT: | Albuquerque International Sunport, 7 miles (11 km.) from city center; direct flights to 20 destinations |
| ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: | Albuquerque Economic Development |
| THE GOOD: | Low cost of living |
| THE CHALLENGE: | Labor force depth |
| WHAT THEY SAY: | |
| “New Mexico as a whole needs to continue to look at how to continue to improve its regulatory and business climate, particularly vis-à-vis its neighboring states.” — Chris Lloyd |
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| “Albuquerque is the biggest little secret in the West right now. Land prices and labor prices are affordable because the area hasn’t been discovered. They’re hungry for deals.” — Jim Renzas |
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| ALTERNATIVE NEW MEXICO LOCATIONS: | Las Cruces, Santa Fe, Los Alamos |
