Employment gains were widespread throughout the region during the 12 months ending in November 1999. Annual gains were lowest in North and South Dakota, both below 1 percent. Gains in the remaining States were 2 percent or greater during the period. Utah's annual rate of growth is again up to almost 3 percent but is well below the increases of the mid-1990s.

Unemployment rates continued to drop in November. Four Rocky Mountain States (Colorado, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Utah) are among the 11 States in the Nation with unemployment rates of less than 3 percent. A new survey of the Denver metropolitan area labor market revealed openings for almost 47,000 full- and part-time jobs during September 1999, almost 14,000 more than the total estimate of unemployment at that time. Almost three-fourths of the openings were in the services and trade sectors. The average hourly wage for all openings was almost $11; the average hourly wage for jobs with no education or experience requirements was $8.15, or 40 percent above the minimum wage.

Recently released population estimates as of July 1999 from the U.S. Census Bureau reveal a striking difference in growth among the States of the Rocky Mountain region. Utah and Colorado posted strong gains as the fourth and fifth fastest growing States in the Nation from 1990 to 1999. The population of Montana increased by more than 10 percent during the same period. At the other end of the spectrum, North Dakota is one of three States that have lost population since the 1990 census. Population gains for the period in Wyoming and South Dakota were both less than 6 percent.

Total residential building activity in the region during 1999 was down slightly from 1998. Multifamily activity was down more than 20 percent as a result of major cutbacks in Utah and Colorado. Single- family activity was up 4 percent regionwide, supported by a 7-percent increase in Colorado. Declines in single-family activity were recorded for Montana, North Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming.

The region's major rental housing markets all tightened in third-quarter 1999. The apartment vacancy rate in the Denver area dropped to 3.7 percent, down from 3.9 percent a year earlier. The rate in Colorado Springs as of third-quarter 1999 was 4.1 percent, down a full percentage point from third-quarter 1998. A fall 1999 survey by the Colorado Division of Housing also revealed healthy rental markets in the rest of the State. Not surprisingly, this survey continued to find very limited availability of rentals in the mountain communities. There is little on the horizon to change the outlook for these areas, but many major markets along the Front Range will become increasingly competitive throughout 2000, as large numbers of apartments issued permits in 1998 and 1999 enter the market. As a result of a dramatic surge in the first half of the year, existing home sales in the Denver area finished 1999 less than 2 percent ahead of sales for 1998. The average sales price for 1999, $188,000, was up 11 percent from 1998, the largest increase of the decade.

Spotlight on Salt Lake City, Utah

Salt Lake City's economy continues to grow at a strong rate, but the pace has slowed from the mid-1990s. Nonagricultural wage and salary employment grew at an annual rate of 2.7 percent in 1999, compared with 2.5-percent growth in 1998. The slowdown in the rate of growth was due to several factors. The Asian economic crisis, beginning in 1998, affected the area's export industries, primarily basic metals, aerospace, and electronics. In addition, losses caused by firms closing or downsizing in the defense, grocery headquarters, finance, and retail industries compounded the slowdown. However, the labor market is still tight, with an unemployment rate of 3.1 percent as of November 1999. The employment growth rate is expected to remain in the 2.5- to 3-percent range over the next few years.

Construction activity continues to be a major factor in the area's economic growth but is expected to decline as projects associated with the 2002 Winter Olympics are completed. During the next 2 years, the area will see the completion of $700 million in direct and related nonresidential Olympic construction and more than $2 billion in highway and light-rail construction. Several major commercial and public-sector projects are expected to support a reduced construction sector after the Olympics. One of the largest of these projects is a planned $375 million revitalization of the 600-acre blighted Gateway District area just west of downtown. The project will contain a mix of residences, restaurants, and office and retail space.

Single-family permit activity in 1999 totaled 7,483 homes, down 8 percent from 1998. This reduced level of activity is expected to continue over the next few years in response to decreased demand resulting from higher interest rates and reduced population growth. Multifamily permit activity continues to decline from the peak year of 1996. Permit activity in 1999 was down 21 percent from 1998 to less than 2,000 units. The majority of the new apartment projects are in western Salt Lake County and in Davis and Weber Counties.

The sales market in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area has cooled off from the extremely tight conditions of the mid-1990s, when double-digit price increases were common. As a result of slower household growth, prices are not increasing as rapidly as in the past. The average price of an existing single-family home in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area reached $172,000 in 1999, up approximately 3 percent from 1998.

The rental housing market improved in 1999. At the end of third-quarter 1999, the apartment vacancy rate had fallen to 4.8 percent, although rents have remained relatively flat. High-rent developments have recently had to reduce rents or offer concessions to lease up. Approximately 800 affordable rental units financed with low-income housing tax credits are coming on the market in 2000 and are expected to increase competition in this affordable segment of the market.