Miami, Fla. – July 20, 2020 – South Florida ranked as the 10th city with the fastest Tech Labor Pool Growth Rate, a metric from CBRE’s Scoring Tech Talent Report that includes 75 U.S. and Canadian tech markets. In the last five years, South Florida has added 14,700 tech jobs, which is equivalent to a 28.1% growth.
According to the report, immigration of talent to tech markets has a sizable impact on residential and commercial real estate, contributing to increases of 15% and 27%, respectively, in rents for South Florida. South Florida currently ranks among the 25 lowest cost markets for companies to operate in, with an average tech talent wage of $88,845 and gross direct asking rent of $37.51 per sq. ft. annually.
The report, which can be viewed in detail by market in the interactive Tech Talent Analyzer, found that most of these markets expanded their tech-talent labor pools by double digit percentages in the past five years.
“We have seen South Florida steadily move up the national ranks in CBRE’s annual Tech Talent Report and believe it reflects the regions viability as a place for corporations to attract and retain professionals that value the areas work, live and play offerings,” said Josh Bank, CBRE’s Managing Director in Miami.
The report also outlines how tech-talent jobs are positioned to weather COVID-19 and related shutdowns and the ensuing recession because, more than ever, companies across all industries need the technical skills that this talent base offers. Many tech products and services such as streaming, remote communications and social media now are in higher demand to support remote work and social distancing.
Tech employment has shown it can withstand economic shocks: In the 2008-2010 recession, tech-talent employment declined by 0.5 percent while overall U.S. employment registered a 5.5 percent drop.
“We expect that most tech-talent markets and professions will thrive after the pandemic subsides, and many that facilitate remote work, e-commerce, social media and streaming services may have even greater growth opportunities accelerated by the COVID-19 disruption,” said Colin Yasukochi, Executive Director of CBRE’s Tech Insights Center. “Markets that have strong innovation infrastructure – leading universities and high concentrations of tech jobs – will lead the next growth cycle.”
South Florida also stood out in the report in other key areas:
- South Florida ranks as a competitive tech labor market in the US.
- Tech wages averaged $88,845 in South Florida last year, an increase of 15 percent since 2015.
- In South Florida the population of millennials grew by 25,802 (4.4%) since 2013.
- Tech degree completions in South Florida totaled 11,989 from 2014-2018
View the full report here. To view individual market statistics and rankings, including rankings on the Scorecard, access CBRE’s Tech Talent Analyzer.
CBRE Group, Inc. (NYSE: CBRE), a Fortune 500 and S&P 500 company headquartered in Dallas, is the world’s largest commercial real estate services and investment firm (based on 2020 revenue). The company has more than 100,000 employees serving clients in more than 100 countries. CBRE serves a diverse range of clients with an integrated suite of services, including facilities, transaction and project management; property management; investment management; appraisal and valuation; property leasing; strategic consulting; property sales; mortgage services and development services. Please visit our website at www.cbre.com.