Study: North Dakota counties see incoming investments

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BISMARCK, N.D. (KXNET) — As our cities expand, so too do the number of homes, schools, and businesses that are necessary to meet the needs of their rising populations. This is especially true in North Dakota — where counties across the state are reporting new incoming investments to help them grow bigger and better than ever before.

It may seem somewhat difficult to pinpoint exactly which of these counties has received the largest financial influx in recent years, but data from the financial security group SmartAsset can help those interested to find out. The organization has recently released its annual study on the places across the United States which are receiving the most incoming investments.

During the study, SmartAsset measured investment in counties across the US across three major metrics — business establishment growth, gross domestic product (GDP) growth, and the number of new building permits per 1,000 homes, all of which were monitored over the last three years. Counties were scored on each of these values, and then ranked according to their total score. Here’s a list of the ten counties in North Dakota where investments are in full throttle — including many in our service area where cities like Bismarck, Mandan, Dickinson, Watford City, and Williston are located!

Rank	County	Business Growth Percentage	GDP Growth (in Millions)	New Buildings Per 1,000 Homes	Incoming Investment Index Score
1	McKenzie	16.4%	$551	5.5	48.27
2	Cass	1.1%	$5,386	19.4	35.94
3	Burleigh	2.0%	$2,938	7.6	31.22
4	Williams	2.7%	$1,473	2.9	29.74
5	Bottineau	1.2%	$235	3.4	27.74
6	Richland	0.6%	$500	3.6	27.06
7	Morton	-0.1%	$830	4.5	26.64
8	Rolette	1.6%	$185	0.0	26.63
9	McHenry	0.8%	$120	0.3	25.77
10	Stark	-0.7%	$1,121	4.0	25.76

Although Williston takes the role of the top area receiving investment due to a massive growth in businesses, counties like Cass and Burleigh are reporting massive GDP growth and larger numbers of newly-constructed buildings. Despite these major investment areas, when it comes to North Dakota as a whole, our percentage of business growth has actually decreased over time.

State	Business Growth Percentage	GDP Growth (in Millions)	New Buildings Per 1,000 Homes
North Dakota	-1.9%	$857	3.6

In order to learn more about the study, and to view an interactive map featuring the results for each state (as well as the entire nation), visit this page on SmartAsset’s website.