Chicago remains a hub for technology firms, good news for the commercial real estate brokers who can close all those deals bringing tech start-ups to the city.
CBRE ranked Chicago as the 13th strongest city in its latest Tech Talent Scorecard, part of the company’s annual Scoring Tech Talent research report. The report ranks 50 U.S. and Canadian markets on their ability to attract and grow tech talent.
The CBRE report also ranks Chicago as one of the top-five markets in North America for producing tech-related degrees, with more than 10,000 completed every year.
According to the report, Chicago’s total tech employment stands at 136,340. That’s up 34.9 percent from five years ago. This makes Chicago the sixth-largest tech market in the United States when it comes to technology jobs.
“The tech market in Chicago has been on a tear for several years running,” said Dan Lynne, senior vice president in the global tech and media practice at CBRE, in a statement. “Tech firms are continuing to expand in Chicago to tap into the city’s considerable talent pool.”
The five top markets in CBRE’s report were the San Francisco Bay area; Washington, D.C.; Seattle; New York City; and Austin. Other markets ranked as momentum markets, markets that are gaining more tech companies and workers because of a lower cost of living and plentiful tech jobs. These markets include Nashville, Charlotte, Tampa, Seattle and Phoenix.
CBRE relies on 15 metrics to determine its Tech Talent Scorecard rankings. These include tech talent supply, completed tech degrees, the industry’s outlook for job growth and the market outlook for both office and apartment rent growth.
The only other Midwest city besides Chicago ranked in the top 15 by CBRE was Minneapolis.
