Carlsbad CA— Carlsbad’s economy grew by $1 billion in 2021 to $14.6 billion, second only to the City of San Diego, according to a report presented to the City Council Feb. 8.
Since the COVID-19 emergency began, city staff has been giving the City Council quarterly updates on Carlsbad’s economy and city finances. The latest report shows revenues up significantly over last year, and the economy accelerating across all sectors.
According to Economic Development Manager Matt Sanford, the diversity of industry in Carlsbad and the city’s focus on innovation have helped local businesses weather COVID-19 related economic impacts.
Here are a few highlights:

• Jobs. Unemployment in Carlsbad was 3.4 percent in December, closing in on the city’s pre-pandemic unemployment rate of 2.9 percent. There were 15,418 unique job postings in Carlsbad between October and December, an increase of more than 2,000 postings from the previous quarter.
• Tourism. The hospitality/tourism industry was one of the sectors in Carlsbad hardest hit by COVID, but December occupancy rates (56.9 percent) were only one percentage point below December 2019 levels and up sharply from 2020. Meanwhile, average daily room rates for this past quarter were $31.12 higher than the average for the same quarter in 2019.
• Home prices. Home values in Carlsbad, along with the rest of the county, have risen dramatically. The median home price in Carlsbad is now $1.3 million, up about 5 percent over the previous quarter. In the past year, Carlsbad median home values have risen 32 percent.
• Commercial real estate. Vacancies for industrial properties are down to 3.9 percent compared to 10.8 percent before COVID, and office vacancies are at 14.4 percent compared to 15.25 percent pre-pandemic. In retail, an area hit hard by COVID, vacancies have ticked up to 8.5 percent, from 5.3 percent. Across all segments, however, average market rents per square foot have begun to climb, surpassing pre-pandemic levels for the first time.

More information
Latest quarterly economic update
Monthly financial updates
City budget