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Where's everyone going? The impact of relocation trends.
Net population gain - Top 10 metro markets (est. 2013-2017
| Rank | Metropolitan Statistical Area | Population Estimate | Estimated Net Migration |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ | 4,505,823 | 44,350 |
| 2 | Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | 4,420,132 | 32,330 |
| 3 | Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | 2,363,519 | 28,651 |
| 4 | Austin-Round Rock, TX | 1,975,390 | 27,776 |
| 5 | Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | 6,543,063 | 27,219 |
| 6 | Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 7,007,313 | 25,968 |
| 7 | Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV | 2,088,437 | 22,368 |
| 8 | Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 2,398,150 | 20,534 |
| 9 | Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | 2,947,055 | 19,617 |
| 10 | Columbia, SC | 799,490 | 18,942 |
| 11 | Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN | 1,808,681 | 18,160 |
| 12 | Jacksonville, FL | 1,429,554 | 16,833 |
| 13 | North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton, FL | 762,626 | 16,295 |
| 14 | San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | 2,345,413 | 15,413 |
| 15 | Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade, CA | 2,241,211 | 12,772 |
| 16 | Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL | 693,989 | 11,593 |
| 17 | Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | 2,355,464 | 11,361 |
| 18 | Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA | 541,686 | 11,161 |
| 19 | Port St. Lucie, FL | 450,515 | 10,940 |
| 20 | Athens-Clarke County, GA | 200,161 | 10,239 |
| 21 | Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | 3,690,530 | 9,587 |
| 22 | Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL | 617,339 | 9,580 |
| 23 | State College, PA | 159,214 | 9,197 |
| 24 | Oklahoma City, OK | 1,335,087 | 9,139 |
| 25 | Raleigh, NC | 1,259,003 | 8,920 |
| 26 | College Station-Bryan, TX | 245,471 | 8,787 |
| 27 | Tallahassee, FL | 373,740 | 8,631 |
| 28 | Richmond, VA | 1,255,974 | 8,343 |
| 29 | Lansing-East Lansing, MI | 466,653 | 8,277 |
| 30 | Columbus, OH | 1,997,890 | 8,220 |
| 31 | Bloomington, IN | 163,742 | 7,959 |
| 32 | Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC-NC | 429,074 | 7,934 |
| 33 | Boise City, ID | 670,134 | 7,857 |
| 34 | Provo-Orem, UT | 575,826 | 7,742 |
| 35 | Boulder, CO | 313,815 | 7,689 |
| 36 | Springfield, MO | 449,552 | 7,656 |
| 37 | Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | 2,765,256 | 7,630 |
| 38 | Colorado Springs, CO | 689,493 | 7,506 |
| 39 | Greeley, CO | 281,704 | 7,273 |
| 40 | Stockton-Lodi, CA | 714,614 | 7,166 |
| 41 | Tucson, AZ | 995,337 | 7,116 |
| 42 | Lubbock, TX | 305,447 | 7,048 |
| 43 | Champaign-Urbana, IL | 235,213 | 7,041 |
| 44 | Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL | 563,261 | 6,939 |
| 45 | Eugene, OR | 360,062 | 6,829 |
| 46 | Greenville, NC | 174,391 | 6,758 |
| 47 | Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL | 644,914 | 6,749 |
| 48 | Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | 5,632,204 | 6,156 |
| 49 | Prescott, AZ | 219,458 | 6,150 |
| 50 | Ocala, FL | 340,745 | 6,138 |
We live in a mobile society. There's nonstop movement from city to city within states and from one part of the country to another. For real estate professionals like you, this steady migration implies opportunity.
Generally, our population shift is to less populated but more affordable cities.Footnote1 If yours is a developing community, homebuyers are likely to increase. And even if your market is losing residents, you could grow your business by helping those looking to relocate sell their homes.
The map and table above represent the top metro markets in terms of net population gain, using the latest data available.Footnote2 While the map and table below indicate the metro markets with the largest net population loss, using the same data.Footnote2 Based on these trends, we can discern patterns of movement and speculate why Americans are on the move.
Net population gain - Top 10 metro markets (est. 2013-2017
Net population gain - Top 10 metro markets (est. 2013-2017
| Rank | Metropolitan Statistical Area | Population Estimate | Estimated Net Migration |
|---|---|---|---|
| 388 | New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | 19,962,332 | -231,565 |
| 387 | Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | 13,109,281 | -119,238 |
| 386 | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | 9,436,736 | -112,316 |
| 385 | Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 6,013,617 | -38,634 |
| 384 | Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | 4,253,511 | -31,975 |
| 383 | San Diego-Carlsbad, CA | 3,242,145 | -30,172 |
| 382 | Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | 5,955,036 | -28,760 |
| 381 | Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | 4,720,372 | -22,945 |
| 380 | Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 5,997,425 | -22,347 |
| 379 | Anchorage, AK | 393,887 | -19,676 |
| 378 | San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA | 4,592,293 | -18,911 |
| 377 | St. Louis, MO-IL | 2,774,053 | -16,515 |
| 376 | San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | 1,946,787 | -15,051 |
| 375 | El Paso, TX | 825,411 | -14,391 |
| 374 | Cleveland-Elyria, OH | 2,040,893 | -13,907 |
| 373 | Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | 2,760,171 | -13,473 |
| 372 | Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | 3,481,744 | -12,589 |
| 371 | New Orleans-Metairie, LA | 1,245,946 | -10,549 |
| 370 | Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT | 937,566 | -9,492 |
| 369 | Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI | 1,557,003 | -9,470 |
| 368 | Honolulu, HI | 977,026 | -9,322 |
| 367 | Pittsburgh, PA | 2,323,809 | -7,955 |
| 366 | Aguadilla-Isabela, PR | 312,667 | -6,081 |
| 365 | Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN | 1,965,449 | -5,815 |
| 364 | Memphis, TN-MS-AR | 1,326,547 | -5,742 |
| 363 | Brownsville-Harlingen, TX | 414,137 | -5,699 |
| 362 | Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR | 721,177 | -5,583 |
| 361 | McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX | 825,922 | -5,323 |
| 360 | Kansas City, MO-KS | 2,062,401 | -5,319 |
| 359 | Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN | 1,262,870 | -5,212 |
| 358 | Flint, MI | 406,319 | -4,739 |
| 357 | Wichita, KS | 633,378 | -4,732 |
| 356 | Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Niagara Falls, NY | 1,123,891 | -4,461 |
| 355 | Laredo, TX | 264,486 | -4,287 |
| 354 | Peoria, IL | 372,426 | -4,155 |
| 353 | Mobile, AL | 409,170 | -4,039 |
| 352 | Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT | 1,201,223 | -3,983 |
| 351 | Shreveport-Bossier City, LA | 438,470 | -3,905 |
| 350 | Ponce, PR | 312,792 | -3,788 |
| 349 | Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA | 837,948 | -3,742 |
| 348 | Worcester, MA-CT | 925,848 | -3,684 |
| 347 | Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA | 901,514 | -3,668 |
| 346 | New Haven-Milford, CT | 854,178 | -3,652 |
| 345 | Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL | 378,269 | -3,454 |
| 344 | Tulsa, OK | 965,293 | -3,339 |
| 343 | Elkhart-Goshen, IN | 199,758 | -3,275 |
| 342 | Arecibo, PR | 186,511 | -3,270 |
| 341 | Albuquerque, NM | 895,065 | -3,171 |
| 340 | El Centro, CA | 176,886 | -2,987 |
| 339 | Appleton, WI | 230,215 | -2,921 |
From this time period of 2013 through 2017, Metro Phoenix had the largest estimated net gain of around 44,000 residents a year, with the Riverside-San Bernardino metro area, just east of Los Angeles, in second with a 32,000 increase. At the other extreme, Greater New York City and Greater Los Angeles lost roughly 231,000 and 119,000 residents, respectively, each year.Footnote2
Populations are often relocating from north to south, from the more established, historic cities to newer, developing ones.Footnote2 Residents are being priced out of living in cities like New York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C.Footnote3 Tech companies are expanding to the business-friendly Sun Belt, which also results in the birth of secondary, service businesses as well as homegrown ventures that reflect the local food, music, fashion and craft scenes. Good examples of this drift are Austin, Orlando and Charlotte.Footnote1
This movement continues the decades-long migration of both retirees and a younger, educated workforce to warmer climes. The bottom line for the real estate market: every change of address equals a potential purchase or sale.