While there is clear evidence that economic conditions in most metro areas across the U.S. have deteriorated sharply over the past year, the Dallas-Fort Worth economy has fared better than most, so far. This view is based on the fact that, over the past year, the rate of job growth in the "Big D" (+1.6%) has been faster than all but two of the fifty largest metro areas in the country and well above the national average. The other two strong employment-growth cities are also in Texas − Houston (+2.1% year over year) and San Antonio (+2.0%).

Across major industries, significant increases in job growth occurred in education and health services (+4.4%), leisure and hospitality services (+3.5%) and government services (+2.9%). Moreover, despite a sharp drop in single-family homebuilding, employment in construction is up by 2.4% year over year in December, due primarily to sustained multi-family construction and a very healthy pace of commercial building.

Property & Portfolio Research Inc. (PPR) estimates that Dallas-Fort Worth added approximately 4.9 million square feet of office space in 2008, which was 53% more than was added in 2008. According to the metro area's civic information source, Downtown Dallas, more than 40 companies have moved to the Dallas Central Business District, including Comerica and TM Advertising.

Looking ahead, although sustained growth of energy exploration in Barnett Shale, one of the largest gas fields in the United States, will help to underpin investment and employment, a number of the key indicators on the Dallas economy are flashing red. According to The Conference Board, help wanted advertising in Dallas-Fort Worth has dropped by almost 40% compared to the 17% decline for the nation as a whole.

This slowdown in hiring will probably cause housing demand to remain weak through 2009 and into 2010. In addition, while a portion of the recently added office space will be absorbed by the new corporate immigrants, the effect of a slowdown in office-based employment plus the disproportionately large increase in new supply will probably cause commercial construction to slow over the next 12 to 18 eighteen months.