Unemployment at 13.9%?

John Burns Real Estate Consulting publishes a newsletter on housing. This week's report says that unemployment is 13.9%. "The U-6 unemployment rate, which represents 13.9% of the total adult population who wants to work, also includes part-time employees who would rather work full-time."

There is a problem with saying that things are better (or worse) today than they were during the Great Depression. We have modified our data definitions so much that today's data really isn't comparable to 1930's data.

Meanwhile, California State workers are crying about mandatory furloughs. They take a day off without pay - but their pay rate isn't cut - and they keep their jobs. One of my concerns about the mid-term housing prospects in Sacramento County was State layoffs. It has been clear for several years that state spending was unsustainable. If the State can keep workers on at a lower rate of pay (via furloughs or pay cuts), that would be a positive for State employees, for the housing market, and for the local economy.

In fact, we might consider adding tax breaks for employers who avoid layoffs over the next three years, as an incentive for employers to pull together and help the economy avoid further contraction and decline.