Kern County's unemployment rate is down to its lowest level in six years.
New numbers released Friday show it fell to 10.1 percent last month.
That's down from 11.4 percent in April and from that same exact rate in May 2013.
The news comes as a new report reveals the southern San Joaquin Valley is facing an economic boom, outperforming most areas in the state in job expansion and economic growth.
The report was presented at the DoubleTree Hotel and it's co-sponsored by Cal State Bakersfield and Cal State Los Angeles.
The report focuses on Kern, Tulare, and Fresno counties and how vital these areas are to the state.
The study was done by the research firm Beacon Economics.
"We are really one of the fastest growing regions in the state, and we have a very promising future ahead of us," said Kathleen Knutzen, Cal State Bakersfield.
The study highlights job expansion and other key measures of growth, including agriculture and oil.
The firm says from 1990 to March of this year, employment has grown by 50 percent in the south San Joaquin Valley.
Local officials say right now, the job market is looking good.
"We're seeing more people come in and actually getting connected with employers and getting hired quickly more so than we're seeing a lot of layoffs like we had in the recession," said Danette Scarry, America's Job Center.
Besides employment, the study finds more people are buying homes in Kern, Tulare, and Fresno counties.
The report shows combined, residential building permits were almost 50 percent higher in 2013 than the previous year.
"If you want to be located in California, if you want to be located in an affordable part of this overall hub of 25 million people, this is the place to be," said Christopher Thornberg, Beacon Economics.
The City of Bakersfield says locally, building permits have gone up significantly from 2012.
The city says last year, more than 9,000 permits were given.
The report also notes some challenges, including pollution and the drought.