Maui Unemployment Down in May


July 1, 2016

Maui County’s unemployment rate was down to 3.2% in May, from 3.6% in May of 2015. This points to a slow and steady strengthening of the economy, which should be reassuring to those who are considering a permanent move to Maui. If you want to plant roots and buy Maui real estate, it’s good to know that unemployment is continuing to fall.

The unemployment data comes from the Hawaii State Department of Labor & Industrial Relations (DLIR), and is not seasonally adjusted. Unsurprisingly, their report revealed that the island of Maui had the lowest unemployment in the county at 3%, down from 3.5% in May of last year. Lanai had an unemployment rate of 7.3%, up from 2.4% in May of last year. Molokai’s unemployment rate was 7.4%, down from 8.6%. Maui’s economy is by far the largest and most robust of the three islands.

Compared to Maui’s unemployment rate of 3%, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for the state of Hawaii was 3.2% in May, which was the same as in April. Although it’s a small margin, it’s encouraging to see that the island of Maui is a bit below the state average.

Another interesting piece of data was the national unemployment rate, which was seasonally adjusted at 4.7 percent, which was a decline from 5% in April. People are sometimes surprised that Hawaii’s unemployment rate is lower than the nation’s as a whole, and Maui’s is even lower than the state’s.

If you’re looking to buy a home on Maui and find gainful employment, perhaps this information will spark your interest and you can do some further investigations in your field. As for your real estate questions, if you need any assistance, we’re happy to guide you through every step of the process. Mahalo!



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