According to a recent article in The Arizona Republic (Thursday, March 20, 2008), population gains in Maricopa County are moderating. So while we're still growing, we're not growing as rapidly.The article reports that Maricopa County added more people than any other county in the United States last year, swelling the population to almost four million people. Their figures were based on new population estimates by the U.S. Census Bureau. A net increase of about 102,000 people during 2006 and 2007 consisted of both births and people moving here.
"About 40 percent of Maricopa County's new residents came from natural increase-the net gain of births and deaths between 2006 and 2007." The rest of the increase is the result of migration-both state to state and international. William Frey, a demographer at the Brookings Institute was quoted as saying, "The bad news is that there's really been a slow-down" in Maricopa County. The peak in population growth (4.1%) occurred between July 1, 2004, and July 1, 2005. "The yearly growth rate dropped to 2.7% between 2006 and 2007..."
However, Maricopa County projects a population of 5 million within the next 10 years. That's an enormous growth that must be accommodated with housing, roads, schools, services, and amenities. The article quoted Maricopa County Manager, David Smith, "(Governments) just need to keep thinking relentlessly to keep coming up with more right and bright ideas."
How will these increases affect our quality of life? How will the more moderate annual gains affect the real estate market in years to come? What solutions should we be thinking about right now?
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