Why Richmond?
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Why Richmond? Richmond, Virginia, has a central place in America's history. It was here that the nation's founding fathers were inspired to set into motion the creation of our country. We’re one of America's oldest cities yet we’re tops in attracting the sought-after millennial workforce, in large part thanks to our robust higher education institutions. Companies from across the globe are attracted to the Richmond region, much like the ten Fortune 1000 companies headquartered here. And there are many others with a major presence or divisional headquarters. Over the last five years, Richmond has had the highest job growth rate in the Commonwealth with the population migration to match. Here are just a few of the reasons why companies and workforce are selecting Richmond, Va. for expansion or relocation. Strategic geography located at the mid-point of the east coast. Richmond, Va. is ideal for companies looking for strong infrastructure network of roads (I-95, I-64, I-85), ports (the Richmond Marine Terminal connects to the Port of Virginia, one of the nation’s largest seaports), air (Richmond International Airport – named one of the most efficient in North America) and rail (only place in the U.S. where three Class I railroads cross above ground at the same location). Simply put, it’s easy to move goods and people to, through and within Greater Richmond. More than 45 percent of the nation’s population can be accessed within a one-day drive. And living here, you’re less than two hours from both the beach and the mountains or our nation’s capital, providing a vast selection of day trip options. Top spot for attracting millenial workforce in addition to existing highly educated talent in the region. Wall Street Journal says Richmond has the 6th highest concentration of millennial workers and Time put Richmond as the second metro where the most millennials are moving. Zillow said that millennials can afford to live alone here moreso than any other major U.S. city. Over 36 percent of our existing workforce of 670,000+ holds at least a bachelor’s degree (in comparison to the national average of 31.8 percent). Within 150 miles, there are more than 1.6 million higher education students in the workforce pipeline, meaning that companies can recruit any level of required skill for years to come. Local colleges are willing to partner with companies to address needs with the Community College Workforce Alliance partnering with skills credentials. Northernmost right-to-work state in the south with low cost of living, low levels of unionization and stable business environment. Fortune 500 companies are headquartered here and household brands operate major divisions in Greater Richmond. Virginia ranks as the #2 state for regulatory environment according to Forbes Best States for Business. Richmond is less than two hours from Washington, D.C. by car or train, yet there is a major cost of living differential (Richmond is 36% less expensive) not to mention it’s easier to get around here (Richmond is the least congested large city in the nation whereas D.C. is the most congested urban area). It’s no wonder why so many international companies (200+) find the Richmond region an easy market in which to enter the U.S. Capital city ripe with fine arts and culture, best street art in the world and top foodie accolades. As the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, Richmond is home to world-class museums like the newly opened Virginia Commonwealth University’s Institute for Contemporary Art (called one of the most anticipated buildings of 2018 by Architectural Digest) as well as the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (one of the largest and most comprehensive museums in the country), Richmond Symphony (one of the nation’s leading orchestras), and Richmond Ballet, to name just a few. We’ve been named a top foodie city by Southern Living and Garden & Gun and are home to 11 James Beard nominees and/or finalists. Greater Richmond is also home to a burgeoning beverage scene with 20+ craft breweries, not including cideries, distilleries and wineries in the region. Living an active, healthy lifestyle is easy in Richmond. We don’t just sit back and watch sports here, we get in the game. We’ve been named one of the nation’s healthiest cities and are one of the best running cities in the country according to Runner’s World. At the center of much of the active lifestyle in the region is the James River with kayaking, canoeing and the only class IV (not for the faint of heart!) rapids in an urban center in the country. Cost of Living Richmond's cost of living is among the lowest of US metros with 1 million or more population. This is driven by low housing costs -- apartment rents are 32 percent below the group's average and home prices are 27 percent lower. Source: C2ER Cost of Living Index, 2017 Annual Average Data and US Census Bureau, 2017 Population Estimates. Grocery Housing Apartment Utilities Transpo. Health Care City Overall Index Home Price Misc. Index Index Index Rent Index Index Index San Francisco CA 192.9 125.8 361.2 $4,023 $1,182,092 115.6 134.4 124.9 128.9 New York/Brooklyn NY 182.0 125.4 323.4 $2,953 $1,144,027 118.3 122.8 111.7 132.4 Washington DC 155.7 113.8 253.7 $2,505 $877,550 114.5 112.4 100.9 122.9 Seattle WA 149.0 127.1 194.2 $2,366 $649,370 123.8 133.1 124.6 135.5 Boston MA 148.2 106.2 207.0 $2,742 $604,205 141.8 110.8 135.8 130.0 Los Angeles CA 148.0 113.9 240.8 $2,633 $786,269 107.1 125.6 109.2 108.9 San Diego CA 146.1 114.7 237.8 $2,294 $821,579 117.7 122.8 107.0 103.6 Portland OR 129.3 115.6 179.0 $2,482 $507,368 78.4 106.3 107.5 117.8 Chicago IL 123.6 108.6 155.6 $1,831 $487,764 90.7 126.6 101.6 115.1 Philadelphia PA 117.2 116.6 129.5 $1,411 $424,983 125.1 114.9 106.1 107.4 Baltimore MD 117.0 107.6 146.9 $1,611 $475,815 107.7 102.9 91.9 106.0 Miami FL 114.6 105.8 143.8 $2,047 $401,772 99.1 112.2 97.3 101.6 Minneapolis MN 104.9 107.0 104.8 $1,128 $352,818 91.6 107.9 104.9 107.3 Dallas TX 102.1 95.1 104.9 $1,318 $317,177 104.8 99.3 101.5 102.5 Cleveland OH 101.2 111.5 88.3 $1,041 $281,845 105.3 102.5 101.6 106.2 Hampton Roads VA 100.6 100.3 98.0 $1,157 $317,326 100.1 93.6 100.8 104.6 U.S. AVERAGE 100.0 100.0 100.0 $1,044 $336,448 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 Pittsburgh PA 99.6 110.8 91.5 $1,110 $281,247 110.6 106.7 94.1 97.6 Atlanta GA 99.0 105.6 94.4 $1,169 $290,041 85.8 101.0 107.9 102.1 Houston TX 98.2 87.1 104.8 $1,337 $307,633 111.2 97.4 91.5 94.7 Austin TX 97.5 88.1 101.9 $1,305 $301,734 88.2 93.3 99.7 100.9 Salt Lake City UT 97.1 107.2 94.1 $1,010 $317,989 75.7 103.5 99.0 99.7 Nashville TN 96.7 97.3 91.1 $1,009 $295,539 90.4 100.3 81.9 103.9 Raleigh NC 96.4 106.1 83.4 $1,013 $261,414 98.0 99.7 100.8 101.3 Charlotte NC 96.2 96.6 86.7 $1,061 $267,863 100.0 96.3 105.4 101.4 Richmond VA 96.1 88.7 88.7 $971 $289,492 106.8 91.9 108.3 101.3 Phoenix AZ 95.0 97.6 95.2 $1,032 $317,372 96.6 91.7 98.0 93.9 Jacksonville FL 94.8 100.8 89.2 $1,154 $265,289 92.7 97.1 87.6 98.0 Indianapolis IN 92.6 93.3 80.8 $1,014 $247,691 98.2 94.2 94.2 99.7 Louisville KY 92.3 89.7 79.7 $898 $257,103 94.7 103.3 93.6 99.9 Kansas City MO 91.5 101.3 81.9 $957 $260,080 77.0 95.0 99.2 97.7 St. Louis MO-IL 90.6 105.2 71.7 $877 $223,050 114.5 95.8 95.9 91.3 Columbus OH 89.7 99.2 76.9 $952 $238,079 78.2 96.9 92.4 97.5 Oklahoma City OK 84.9 89.6 72.6 $797 $238,905 87.5 85.7 92.2 91.1 Cost of Living Source: C2ER Cost of Living Index, 2017 Annual Average Data 200 182 180 155.7 160 148.2 140 123.1 123.6 120 114.6 96.1 96.2 99 100 National Avg. 80 Richmond VA Charlotte NC Atlanta GA Miami FL Newark NJ Chicago IL Boston MA Washington DC Brooklyn NYC Demographic Profile - Richmond Virginia MSA Source: Chmura Economics and Analytics, JobsEQ, April 2018 PERCENT VALUE Richmond, VA Richmond, VA Virginia USA Virginia USA MSA MSA Population Total Population — — — 1,258,158 8,310,301 318,558,162 Male 48.4% 49.2% 49.2% 609,288 4,086,283 156,765,322 Female 51.6% 50.8% 50.8% 648,870 4,224,018 161,792,840 Median Age — — — 38.4 37.8 37.7 Under 18 Years 22.2% 22.4% 23.1% 279,682 1,865,556 73,612,438 18 to 24 Years 9.6% 9.9% 9.8% 120,421 823,735 31,296,577 25 to 34 Years 13.8% 13.9% 13.6% 174,254 1,154,537 43,397,907 35 to 44 Years 13.0% 13.2% 12.7% 163,344 1,094,958 40,548,400 45 to 54 Years 14.5% 14.2% 13.6% 181,987 1,183,551 43,460,466 55 to 64 Years 13.1% 12.6% 12.6% 165,397 1,043,147 40,061,742 65 and Over 13.8% 13.8% 14.5% 173,073 1,144,817 46,180,632 "Prime Working Age" of 25 to 54 Years 41.3% 41.3% 40.0% 519,585 3,433,046 127,406,773 Race White 61.7% 68.7% 73.3% 776,370 5,712,958 233,657,078 Black or African American 29.9% 19.2% 12.6% 376,247 1,596,352 40,241,818 American Indian and Alaska Native 0.3% 0.3% 0.8% 4,380 21,948 2,597,817 Asian 3.6% 6.1% 5.2% 45,364 502,878 16,614,625 Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0.0% 0.1% 0.2% 545 5,494 560,021 Some Other Race 1.5% 2.3% 4.8% 19,213 190,972 15,133,856 Two or More Races 2.9% 3.4% 3.1% 36,039 279,699 9,752,947 Hispanic or Latino (of any race) 5.6% 8.7% 17.3% 70,803 725,092 55,199,107 Population Growth Population Annual Average Growth, 2006-2016 1.0% 0.9% 0.8% 12,442 73,808 2,474,760 Economic Labor Force Participation Rate & Size (civilian pop.