Times are tough in Indiana, but Michael Lunsford, president and CEO of Coldwell Banker, said the state has seen worse.
"[Indiana isn't] going to get a lot of change until the first six months of this coming year," Lunsford said. "There could be things that could change that positively or negatively."
The 13th annual Economic Outlook Luncheon was held in the Horizon Convention Center in Muncie on Tuesday. The luncheon discusses the economic forecast of the country and state as well as possible solutions or alternatives for the economy. This year's luncheon featured a panel of speakers, each presenting facts and statistics that put Indiana's economic situation into perspective.
"We're in a recession that really had two phases: a mild phase and a now harsh phase," Michael Hicks, director of the Center for Business and Economic Research said. "The harsh phase that we are facing in Indiana is harsh relative to our recent past but not harsh to the more historical [recessions]. It's not a Great Depression by any stretch of the imagination, it's not even a 'Great Recession' like in '82 and '83."
During the 'Great Recession' of 1982 the unemployment rate for Indiana reached 12.8 percent, its all-time high. During 1982 and 1983, 37 of 50 states recorded high unemployment rates.
As of October 2008, Indiana's unemployment rate had reached 6.4 percent.
Typically, the job situation gets the worst out of all facets of the economy, Lunsford said. But when the job forecast gets a little better, the economy will be first to follow and then more jobs will begin to become available, Lunsford said.
"If [the economy is] near the bottom, and things starts turning more quickly, that'll be better for us," Lunsford said.
"Everyone is nervous about the economy, so even when it starts getting a little bit better, people will have to feel confident in the economy. That'll take a little time."
Ryan Kitchell, Director of State Office of Management & Budget and the keynote speaker during the luncheon, said changes need to effect how federal money is handled.
"We're looking at programs that are maybe outdated," Kitchell said. "We're going to be proposing to stop doing programs that have been done for a while and instead do things that will preserve state tax dollars."
Despite all of the positive news about Indiana's economic situation, we still aren't necessarily in a good position, Lunsford said.
"This [presentation] is the same one being given to people in convention halls all around the country," Lunsford said. "Ours just isn't as bleak."
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