An analysis of 1,800 U.S. counties by RealtyTrac.com shows Coweta County with a small increase in millennials (people age 28 and younger) while Fayette County leads the nation in the percentage of millennials leaving the county.
RealtyTrac analyzed census population data between 2007 and 2013 in more than 1,800 counties nationwide to discover which markets are seeing the biggest shifts the millennial population. The analysis further focused in on the top 10 counties for increases and decreases in millennials. Coweta during the 2007-2013 period had a 2.56 percent increase in millennials, with 21.5 percent of the county’s population of approximately 130,000 falling into the age 28 and under group.
Fayette led the nation with a 31 percent decrease in millennials, with that age group accounting for 13.5 percent of Fayette’s population of 108,000. Coming in second with the most millennials leaving is Citrus, Fla. at 27 percent, Sacramento, Calif. at 25 percent, Prescott, Ariz. at 22.6 percent, metro Detroit at 22 percent, metro Chicago at 20 percent, Monroe County, Mich. at 19 percent, Monroe County, Penn. at 18.6 percent and Orange County, New York at 18.5 percent.
“The millennial generation is the key to a sustained real estate recovery and boomers who are downsizing are helping open the door for many first time homebuyers while also driving demand for purchases and rentals in the markets where they are moving,” said Daren Blomquist, Vice President of RealtyTrac. “Naturally, millennials are attracted to markets with good job prospects and low unemployment, but that tend to have high rental rates and high home price appreciation, while boomers are moving to lower populated areas which have slower home price appreciation.” So where are Millennials moving?
The bottom line, according to RealtyTrac, is that millennials are moving to places with more opportunities to find jobs. So where are those places? They include Metro Washington, D.C. (an 81 percent increase in millennials), metro New Orleans (71 percent increase), Denver (57 percent increase), Montgomery County in Tennessee (41 percent), Hudson County in New Jersey (44 percent), metro New York City (43 percent), Portland, Oregon (41 percent) and Nashville, Tennessee (37 percent).
