According to rankings compiled by the Business Insider, Florida ranked the seventh best economy in the nation. The result was driven by bands of tourists, growth in non-farm payrolls (+3%), a recovering housing market and a $15 billion state government surplus. The state’s housing recovery was the fifth best nationwide, with housing prices rising 7.85 percent between the third quarter of 2013 and the third quarter 2014. The six indices used for the ranking are: recent change in housing prices, non-farm payroll, job growth, unemployment rate, GDP per capita, average weekly wage, and state government surplus and deficit. Rounding out the top five are Texas (5), Colorado (4), California (3), Oregon (2), while North Dakota came in this year’s No. 1.
