Annual employment growth in Whatcom County certainly mirrors the sale of homes in the county. In the graph below, employment was growing in 2004 at it's great rate in nearly 10 years. 2004 was also the peak in the number of homes sold in the county. In 2009, employment actually shrank by more that 3%, the period of the lowest home sales in the county. So, no surpirses here.

 

There are indicators that enployment is beginning to turn around at the national level--jobs are being created, people are being hired. Whatcom county generally lags behind the nation in all economic conditions, so the turn around will occur later, but maybe this year.