Home values up 161%—crime drops 62%

Modest job growth, soaring property values and a dramatic 62 percent reduction in crime topped the good news about the current status of Queens’ economic development in a report given recently by State Comptroller Alan Hevesi.
At a breakfast on Thursday, June 8, sponsored by the Queens Economic Development Corporation, Hevesi spoke about Queens having the second largest and most diverse economy of all five boroughs with the county generating an additional 8,000 jobs in the two-and-half-year period that ended on June 30, 2005.
“In addition to the jobs created in Queens, borough residents have benefited from the overall economic recovery throughout the City,” Hevesi said. “The combination has driven the borough’s unemployment rate to its lowest level in 15 years.”
One of the biggest numbers that jumped out in the report showed that since 2000, Queens’ home values increased by 161 percent with the average home value, $570,500 - the highest in all five boroughs.
Although this was good news for homeowners, it also means that property taxes have increased dramatically and finding affordable housing can be challenging. The average rental price in Queens was $900 a month, which ranked second only to Manhattan with Queens residents spending 28.5 percent of their income on rent.
“The good news is that homeowners have more equity,” Hevesi said. “The bad news is that housing is less affordable.”
The report also indicated that wages for Queens workers continued to rise with the average salary at $39,835 which ranks second only to Manhattan.
In addition to positive economic signs, Queens experienced a 62 percent drop in overall crime from 1995 through 2005 - the largest drop of any borough.
“The forecast for Queens is brilliant,” said Borough President Helen Marshall, who introduced Hevesi during the breakfast.
Also noted in the upbeat report:
After steep declines in passenger traffic in the aftermath September 11, 2001, the Queens airports rebounded to reach a new record of more than 66 million passengers in 2005. The Port Authority estimates that JFK and LaGuardia airports are responsible for an estimated 43,000 jobs and $37 billion in economic activity in the region.
Film and television production, which currently represents a relatively small portion of jobs in Queens, remains an important industry and is poised for growth with the new Silvercup Studio expansion planned.
Furthermore, as in the other boroughs, health care and social assistance is a major employer in Queens and comprised almost 24 percent of the borough’s jobs in 2004.