Savanna Letcher
Econ 606
9/5/2019
Case study: Best City to for Future Relocation of Speech-Language Pathology Clinic
There are many things to consider when making deciding to move a business from one location to another. It is imperative to the success of potential new businesses to find a perfect location to feed a growing company. The purpose of this case study is to study national and state data to determine which city would be ideal for relocating the business.
The first thing to consider when relocating a business is prospective employees.
Collegetuitioncompare.com has compiled a database of graduation rates from the top schools with Speech-language pathology degrees. Leading that list was The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with 91% followed by Appalachian State at 73% and East Carolina University at
62%. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has the projected job growth in the field of Speechlanguage Pathology listed as 27%
1
, which is much faster than the average. With an expected growth rate of that amount, it is imperative that a company be competitive in today's marketplace.
Figure 1

Savanna Letcher
Econ 606
9/5/2019
The best way to be competitive is to offer a salary that will allow an employee to meet, if not exceed the cost of living in the area. The BLS has listed the average salary and hourly wages for the past ten years (see figure 2), and there has been an upward trend. The average salary in the United States in the year of 2018 for speech pathologist was $80,700 however the average salary for a speech-language pathologist in North Carolina was only $75,310 this suggests that as potential employees may seek jobs in other states due to not being compensated adequately. For the practice, we recommend a salary of $70,780 a year for the employees; this will be explained more in the next section.
$36,00
$35,00
$34,00
$33,00
$32,00
$31,00
$30,00
$29,00
$28,00
$34,54
$35,22
$33,79
$35,31
$33,78
$31,04
$31,74
$33,36
$31,98
$31,18
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
$80 000,00
$75 000,00
$70 000,00
$65 000,00
$60 000,00
$73 440,00
$70 250,00
$75 310,00
$64 860,00
$66 510,00
$69 810,00
$66 010,00
$70 290,00
$64 550,00
$71 850,00
$55 000,00
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

Savanna Letcher
Econ 606
9/5/2019
After researching salary requirements for speech-language pathologist it is imperative to research potential cities in which to locate the business. When considering North Carolina as a potential home for the business, three cities come to mind. First Charlotte is a beautiful area for a clinic. The population of the city is 859,035 according to the most recent United States Census, which is the largest in the state. However, the average salary for speech pathologist in $76,440/ year and $36.70/hour which is much higher than the national average. Also, the colleges that are in the area do not have a Speech-pathology program which means that prospective employees would most likely have to relocate, and that would be factored into any job offer that they would accept. The second city that would be an exciting choice is Chapel Hill. With UNC-Chapel Hill in the same city the business would not see a shortage of potential employees. Much like
Charlotte, the population of the city is more significant than most cities in North Carolina at
559,535, which would supply a demand for the service. However, when examining the average salary of 91,220, the cost of employing the students in the area would be significantly higher than other cities in North Carolina. The last city and the city that this business would most thrive in is Greensboro. This city offers many locations that would more than accommodate the business need for customer access and space. The average salary in Greensboro for Speechlanguage pathologist is $65,330/ year or $30.40/ hour which is well below the national average.
The average cost for a home in the area is around 140,000 which would be more than affordable for someone living on almost a $66,000 salary. Also this city is only 76.6 miles away from
Chapel Hill, so the graduates from UNC-Chapel hill would not have a hard time moving away from family if they had to. Taking all facts into consideration Greensboro, North Carolina is the best choice for the relocation of the Speech-Language Pathology clinic.

References
Savanna Letcher
(n.d.). Schools. Retrieved from https://www.collegetuitioncompare.com/my-schools/
Econ 606
9/5/2019
(n.d.). Speech-Language Pathologists: Occupational Outlook Handbook: Retrieved from https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/speech-language-pathologists.htm
(2019, August 26). Tables Created by BLS. Retrieved from https://www.bls.gov/oes/tables.htm
Wang, J., Wang, J. W. J., & New York Times. (2019, June 20). Average Income in America:
What salary in the United States puts you in the top 50%, top 10%, and top 1%?
(Updated for 2019). Retrieved from https://wallethacks.com/average-median-income-inamerica/