Tech Crunch
Dallas-Fort Worth earns top 10 status for high-tech jobs
Dallas-Fort Worth is feeling the tech crunch. According to CBRE Research’s 2016 Tech-Thirty Report, of the 30 leading technology markets in the United States and Canada, DFW is No. 10 (up from last year’s rank of 17) in terms of high-tech job growth.
Austin ranks even higher, coming in at No. 3, followed by Phoenix at No. 2 and, unsurprisingly, San Francisco at No. 1.
Over the past five years, the tech industry has been the fastest growing subset of the labor market, creating 780,000 new jobs at a 7.3 percent growth rate. In that time, the industry also accounted for nearly 20 percent of all office leasing activity.
CBRE’s report shows which markets have the highest potential growth and value, which markets benefited most from tech industry growth, and which submarkets command rent premiums or offer discounts.
In Dallas-Fort Worth, high-tech jobs grew 19.7 percent from 2013 to 2015, making it one of the top three markets for high-tech jobs in the country.
“DFW has become a major tech market to be reckoned with,” says Jeff Eiting, vice president and co-leader of the technology and media practice group in CBRE’s Dallas office, in a release. “With more than 90,000 high-tech jobs, our tech workforce is twice the size of Austin’s and growing.
“Tech companies will continue to be attracted to the large, well-educated labor pool that DFW offers, as well as our relatively low cost of living and cost of office space.”
The DFW area is also one of the most affordable rent markets compared to other, larger tech markets, with the report showing that average office rents in DFW’s top tech submarket, Far North Dallas, rose 17.6 percent to $24.67. That compares to a 16.6 percent growth rate in the overall market for the same time period.
“Despite the rent growth that DFW has seen over the last couple years, this market continues to be affordable compared to other large tech markets,” says Clay Vaughn, senior vice president and co-leader of the technology and media practice group in CBRE’s Dallas office. “The report cited DFW as one of the best value tech markets because we offer a great combination of low office rents along with a growing high-tech labor pool.”
