Detroit Scores B+ in Business Friendliness

A study ranks Detroit in the top one-third of small business-friendly cities in the nation.

Detroit received a grade of “B-Plus” on overall friendliness to small businesses in a recent survey. Thumbtack’s Small Business Friendliness Survey asks owners how it is to deal with local government regulations.

Chief Economist Jon Lieber says that’s a big factor in the business success.

“This measure of how friendly the regulations are is really about how much time these businesses have to take out in running and growing their business in order to make sure they are following and understanding all the rules the government puts in place,” Lieber says. 

Lieber says Detroit scored an average C+ in business regulations, taxing, and licensing. He says the city also scored a B+ in ease of starting a business, suggesting there isn’t a huge burden in getting one off the ground. 

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