If you're moving to Austin for business, you're in the right place - and that's not just our Austin pride talking. The city is ranked third in Forbes' annual survey of Best Places for Business and Careers - for the third year in a row.

We're also known for our vibrant high-tech industry environment. In fact, of the 50 fastest-growing technology companies in Texas, 19 make their home in Austin, according to a report released by Deloitte & Touche in August 2006.

And, Austin's milder-than-most-cities' traffic, temperate weather and still affordable housing options were factors in another survey by the Silicon Valley Leadership Group of the "best tech towns" in the country, beating out such known tech stalwarts as San Jose, San Diego, Chicago, New York and Boston.

Austin also has a high percentage of college graduates that are fueling the city's thriving business economy - not surprising considering the top colleges and universities that are based in the area, including Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas State University in San Marcos, and St. Edwards University, Huston Tillotson University and the University of Texas - all located in Austin proper.

Consider that the University of Texas McCombs School of Business is ranked 18th in the Wall Street Journal's annual overall listing of the best business schools in the U.S., the survey also recognized UT's accounting program, which was ranked third.

UT was also ranked number one of more than 400 major research universities worldwide in a study from the Milken Institute that looked at the ability of universities to produce patents from their biotechnology research. Those are huge honors for Austin, which has been steadily becoming known as a hub for biotech research and companies.

Austin's also home to a lot of creative, talented people. Among the top 20 cities for business across the country, "creative-class" employees made up at least 25 percent of each city's workforce. That comes as no surprise in a town where creativity and entrepreneurship are encouraged.

In August 2006, the Wall Street Journal, in its "Most Inventive Towns in America" survey, ranked Austin in the top ten for innovation - we had the third-highest number of patents in 2005 (1,705 total), according to a survey conducted by ipIQ, a company that specializes in technology analysis. And, for the second straight year, Austin ranked second in the country by MovieMaker magazine as one of the top American cities to be a filmmaker.

We're smart, too. According to a survey conducted by Bizjournals.com, part of the American City Business Journals national business newspaper chain, in June 2006, Austin ranked third as one of the top communities with the "highest concentration of brainpower." Major factors for consideration included the number of college graduates in a city, and its residents' ability to "innovate, create, compete, and make money."

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