Polk's August jobless rate rises to 4.9 percent.

Byline: Kyle Kennedy

Sep. 28--A familiar story played out last month as unemployment rose and the housing market continued to see annual declines, according to The Ledger's monthly Polk County Business Barometer. Tourism revenue was the only indicator to show an increase.

Polk's jobless rate for August, 4.9 percent, was up from 4.1 percent the year before and 4.8 percent in July. The county gained about 2,800 jobs since August 2006, but economist Gordon Kettle said Polk's sluggish job growth rate and sharp uptick in unemployment reflect a slowing national economy.

"The housing market is in recession and has spilled over with a multiplier effect on many other industries in the economy," said Kettle, an economic consultant to the county and a professor at Polk Community College, in an e-mail to The Ledger. "Unfortunately, this situation is not poised to immediately improve as inventories of unsold homes have continued to rise in Polk County and across the nation."

Home sales fell again in August, marking the 15th consecutive month of annual declines. August's total of 340 homes was down nearly 32 percent from 499 a year ago.

In addition, the county's median home price of $170,900 was down 5 percent from last year.

Building permits for new construction totaled 296 last month, falling more than ...