A recent spate of studies and data on metropolitan areas has looked kindly on the city and metro region of Eau Claire. For example, in a comparison of middle-management type neighborhoods in more than 300 cities, a real estate survey found Eau Claire to have the third least-expensive housing market. The survey noted that a home worth roughly $110,000 in the Eau Claire region would be worth $975,000 in Palo Alto, Calif.
The region also received an "A" and ranked 33rd out of 318 metro areas in long-term growth and stability, according to a study by the Policom Corp.
Square on top of that was an unemployment rate in the city of Eau Claire that dropped to 3.7 percent in June—one of only two cities in the state that did so—and a construction boom that looks to obliterate the city's record established just last year. As of mid-year, Eau Claire had seen over $100 million in construction, more than $40 million above the same record period last year.
