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Highlands Today

Is Highlands County's Economy On Its Way Back?

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Highlands Today Staff

Published: May 19, 2008

Has Highlands County's economic woes hit bottom and started slowly creeping up? Do we even dare say such things out loud in fear that there will be some kind of jinx? It's hard to say on both counts, but a few smart people believe we might have hit bottom and that we have no where to go but up. We certainly hope that's true.

A lot of houses are on the market these days and it seems like in the last month or so, some of them are being sold. That probably has to do with prices falling enough that buyers don't want to miss a good thing, but it's still a good sign. The first sign of an improving economy will be some of those "For Sale" signs being topped off with "Sold" signs.

Florida's economy is far from being strong, but even at the state level, officials are whispering that the worst may be behind us. They also warn, however, that this is a fragile time for the economy, and not to expect another boom any time soon.

Actually, the last thing we need is another boom. Highlands County and other rural areas never experienced booms like other parts of the state have had for decades. We just had slow, steady growth. But a few years ago the local market went wild with speculators looking to flip houses for a quick profit. It worked for a while, but markets like that can never last. Inevitably it busted, and the last person with the high-priced house lost.

Steady growth always is the best way for an area to grow. It allows infrastructure to be put into place as growth happens, and it doesn't cause "bubbles" that burst and hurt people economically. The lesson learned locally if real estate takes off in a big way should stick around for a while. But when the money starts flowing, it's easy to forget such things.

We would love for consumer confidence to return and people to start buying all kinds of goods. We need stimulation throughout all sectors of our economy. Of course, gas prices help knock the wind out of any economic rebound, but we might as well get used to that. A lot of people in the know say gas prices will stay high from here on out. We Americans are spoiled because gas prices are much higher in most of the world – and still are.

We just hope that glimmer some of us see really is the end of the tunnel on these tough economic times rather than a mirage. Good people are hurting and they need some relief.

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