Fargo, ND, Thriving in Tough Economy

Just mention Fargo, ND and people who know Fargo, the movie, smile with delight, knowing this dark comedy spoofs the residents of this northerly city in a loving, endearing way.

Here’s a sampling of Fargo lexicon via IMDB:

Jean Lundegaard: [chopping vegetables] Hiya, hon! Welcome back! How was Fargo?
Jerry Lundegaard: Yah, real good now.
Jean: Dad’s here.
[Jerry's mood changes as he hears this news]
Jerry: Is he stayin’ for supper then?
Jean: I dunno… I think so. Dad?
Wade Gustafson: What?
Jean: [thick Minnesota accent] You stayin’ for supperrrrr?
Wade: Yah!

To non-Fargoians, Fargo seems like a remote outpost that people would want to move away from, not move to. However, CNN reporter Gary Tuchman paid a visit to Fargo to find out why Fargo is thriving and is not feeling the effects of high unemployment rates, slow real estate sales, and enjoys a state budget surplus of $1 billion while other states, like California, are near bankruptcy. This is what he found in Fargo:

• Unemployment rate of 3.4 percent (national average: 7.6 and growing)
• Realtors report  continuing increases in housing sales
• North Dakota state budget has a one billion dollar surplus
• North Dakota has oil
• “Their upper Midwest Scandinavian sensibilities,” which results in financial practicality and conservatism.
• Bankers in Fargo have been very conservative about loans and mortgages and have had a small amount of foreclosures compared to the rest of the nation.

Too bad the rest of the nation didn’t latch onto these sensibilities.

Ready to move to Fargo? The local Fargo community is enjoying a Zillow Home Value Index of $152,000, which is an increase of 2.4% year-over-year compared to the rest of the nation that dropped 11.6% in Q4 year-over-year. See Zillow Real Estate Market Reports for your area.

Now, remind me: how cold and how hot does it get in Fargo?