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Midland, TX
Midland
MSA: Midland, TX
Best places ranking: #6 among small metro areas
Population: 129,494
Midland is the regional center for the state's oil and gas industry in the Permian Basin, handling 61% of Texas's oil production. Like all Texas cities, Midland has no corporate income tax or state income tax, making it an attractive place for business -- and for companies that bring new jobs to the area, the Midland Development Corporation offers incentives.

Midland's downtown area is being renovated, with an emphasis on mixed-use development and green spaces. Next to petroleum, health care and retirement are the town's major industries. Unemployment is low, and the cost of living is reasonable.

This part of the state is semi-arid, flat, and has no natural streams or lakes. Residents call it a family-oriented community with outstanding athletic facilities for the young and old alike. Touted as the childhood home of former President George W. Bush, the area is adjacent to the Big Bend Region of Texas and Big Bend National Park. -Dinah Eng
Launch Toolbox:
Resources for getting started in Midland, TX

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Local smallbiz lenders

  • First Baird Bancshares
  • Happy Bancshares
  • Southwest Bank
  • Superior Financial Group
  • Plains Bancorp
See all local lenders

Midland Business Statistics
Employer establishments with 1-49 employees
(2007)		 4,151 3,516
Small business growth rate
(2004-2007)		 8.2% 4.1%
State business tax climate ranking
(out of 50 states)		 7 N/A
Percentage of population with bachelor's degree
(ages 25-34)		 21.8% 23.5%
Violent crime
(rate per 100,000 inhabitants, 2007)		 348.6 385.1
Property crime
(rate per 100,000 inhabitants, 2007)		 3,431.1 3,395.2
Population growth
(2003-2008)		 9.8% 4.93%
Per-capita income
(2007)		 $52,974 $31,933
Per-capita income growth
(2002-2007)		 63.2% 23.6%
GDP (in millions)
(2006)		 $8,700 $4,952
GDP growth
(2001-2006)		 72% 33%
Average hourly wage
(2008)		 $18.64 $17.50
Housing foreclosure rate
(first half of 2009, 1 per every X housing units)		 1,429 850
Median rent
(2009, for a 2-bedroom housing unit)		 $846 $737
Housing price-to-income (HPI) ratio
(first quarter of 2009)		 1.1% 1.8%
Long-term HPI ratio
(20-year average, 1984-2004)		 1.2% 1.7%
HPI deviation from long-term average
 -10% 0.1%

All statistics are for the full Metropolitan Statistical Area. For a complete list of data sources, see "How we picked the Best Places."

From the November 2009 issue
Why I Launched Here
"Midland's the best place in the world to start a business, because if you're committed and stick with it, the community will support you 110. " -Susie Hitchcock-Hall
Best Places Winners
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The factors that matter most to me are:
 Affordable wages  Few foreclosures
 Educated workers  Low housing costs
 Low crime  High local incomes
 A growing economy  Population growth
 Growing small business population

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How we picked the Best Places
This year we partnered with the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation to find the 50 most business-friendly communities in America.

With help from Robert Fairlie, an economist and leading scholar of entrepreneurship at the University of California, Santa Cruz, we developed a methodology and sifted through such data on factors such as per capita income, hourly wages, workforce quality, crime rates, taxes and foreclosures. More

Comments? E-mail the editors
Data partners

This package was produced in partnership with the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.

Foreclosure data provided by RealtyTrac.

Housing price-to-income data provided by Moody's Economy.com.