Construction cranes are everywhere in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in 2016. The greatest concentration appears to be along the Dallas North Tollway and Sam Rayburn Tollway (121). That area known as Legacy Park in Plano, Texas is where Toyota, Liberty Mutual and FedEx are building office towers. The Dallas Cowboys new practice facility along with many apartments, condos and shopping centers are also being built just north of Plano in Frisco, Texas. In that Plano to Frisco stretch on the Dallas North Tollway which is just about a mile long, there is an estimated $5 billion in new construction underway.
As an independent insurance agency that places commercial insurance with Liberty Mutual, we are pleased to see the company make a major commitment to Texas. Their headquarters are still in Boston, but they have picked North Texas to house a major regional office. Since Liberty Mutual’s new office will hold 4000 employees, this means that several thousand people will be relocating to the area from other states.
It is also good to see Toyota recognize that the DFW area has a lot to offer with two major airports, lower tax rates, less regulation and lower building costs. Most of their employees who will be moving from California will enjoy a much bigger home than they were able to afford in California.
“If you build it, they will come,” rings true for the DFW area as employees and their families are being transferred to the area because their employer relocated here. But also many people have moved to the DFW area because they could not find work in other parts of the country. Even now with the slowdown in oil production in other areas, people are moving to the DFW area.
Builders and other contractors are also moving here to participate in the building boom as the area needs more places for people to live. Apartments are under construction everywhere and with occupancy rates of 95%, there is a demand. There are not enough houses being built to meet the demand so new home builders are moving to the area.
Our agency has recently written general liability, workers compensation, property, auto and builders risk insurance for several new builders who have moved to the area. We also expect to continue to write home and auto insurance for those moving from other states.
“Welcome to Texas”