The counties covered by this report—Los Angeles, San Diego, San Bernardino, Orange, and Riverside—added 130,300 new jobs between November 2016 and November 2017. As a result, the unemployment rate dropped from 4.7% to 3.8%. Employment growth in Southern California picked up a bit as we moved through the final quarter of last year, and I expect this to continue as we move into 2018.

Employment in the Las Vegas metropolitan area continues to moderate but, with a year-over-year employment growth rate of 2.7%, the region is still performing well above the national average of 1.4%. Over the past 12 months, the area has added 25,500 new jobs. This has led to a respectable unemployment rate of 5.3%.

The Washington State economy added 104,600 new jobs over the past 12 months. This impressive growth rate of 3.1% is well above the national rate of 1.4%. Interestingly, the slowdown we saw through most of the second half of the year reversed in the fall, and we actually saw more robust employment growth.

It might be tempting as a renter to think that you don’t need an insurance policy if you’re renting an apartment or home, but not having one could cost you more than you think. A 2016 poll by the Insurance Information Institute found that only 41 percent of renters have their own renters insurance policy. Here are a few reasons why it’s important to have your own insurance policy as a renter.