Burnet County among top in state and nation for investments
Burnet County is currently ranked No. 2 in Texas and No. 6 in the nation for incoming investments in 2024, according to a new study from SmartAsset, an online consumer finance information service. A combination of business growth, GDP growth, and an enormous number of new building permits launched the county to the top.
Burnet County has seen a 33.88 percent rise in the number of new businesses started over the past three years, an increase of $2,114 to its per-capita gross domestic product (GDP), and a reported 63.57 new building permits issued per 1,000 homes.
“This study identifies the places across the U.S. which are receiving the most incoming investment,” reads the report from SmartAsset. “The study measures investment in counties across three metrics: business establishment growth, gross domestic product (GDP) growth and new building permits.”
Burnet County ranks second behind Hidalgo County in South Texas for the most incoming investment in the state in 2024. Across the nation, the county is sixth behind (in order) Hidalgo County, Los Angeles County in California, Jasper County in South Carolina, Jackson County in Georgia, and Brunswick County in North Carolina.
Burnet County’s strongest statistic is the number of new building permits issued per 1,000 homes. According to SmartAsset, this number is a measure of the investment and development of the local real estate market. The county’s 63.57 new building permits dwarfed every other county in Texas. That number is 20.67 for Hidalgo County and 53.4 for Caldwell County, the next highest in the state.
The surging investments are fairly recent. SmartAsset also has a published 2019 ranking in which Burnet County is No. 15 in the state with a 9.3 percent increase in businesses, $217 in per-capita GDP, and 26.1 building permits issued per 1,000 homes. It was ranked No. 64 in the nation at the time.
In 2015, Burnet County was only ranked No. 39 in the state and No. 346 in the nation. At the time, its new business growth was at 1.7 percent, its per-capita GDP growth was at $380, and it was at 8.9 new building permits issued.