Posted by Turnquist Partners on Thursday, January 16th, 2014 at 11:13am.

Seven cities in Texas ranked among the top 25 metros in the country for job creation, but its booming technology sector and hip image sent the Austin area to the top of a prestigious list ranking the nation’s best performing cities.

The Milken Institute report commends Austin’s business-friendly, low-tax and low-regulation climate that attracts new business and the use of incentives to attract employers like Visa to the area. But the report also mentions that Austin’s culture and outlook plays a major role in attracting new employers and businesses to the area.

It also notes the University of Texas’ role as a recruiter for new firms, and the Austin Chamber of Commerce’s efforts to position Austin as a top city for job growth.

The nonprofit Milken Institute is a nonpartisan think tank with a mission to advance economic and policy solutions that create jobs, widen access to capital and enhance health.

“Austin’s private and public partners have done an incredible job channeling the creative and entrepreneurial energies of our community,” said Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell. “This honor is shared by everyone who lives here and loves Austin.”

"The Milken Institute’s honor caps a year of success and international recognition for the City of Austin and the partners that make our community exceptional,” said City Manager Marc Ott. “From job growth and management excellence to municipal communications and digital government, Austin’s achieved an exciting record of success in 2013.”

The Milken institute’s “Best-Performing Cities” measures job, wages and technology performance to rank the nation’s 200 large metropolitan areas and 179 smaller metros. The Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos area regained the top spot after losing it last year and placing second. Provo-Orem ranked second this year, and San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City placed third. The report recognized six other Texas large metro areas in the top 25 – Dallas-Plano-Irving (7th); Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown (8th); San Antonio-New Braunfels (12th); Fort Worth-Arlington (16th); Corpus Christi (17th); and Laredo (22nd).

For more information including the complete 2013 report, visit best-cities.org.

Information courtesy of: City of Austin