What are the places that pique millennials’ interest? The realtor.com economic data team analyzed the 60 largest U.S. cities and how much millennials were checking out listings in those areas, compared with the national average, from August 2016 to February 2017. Here’s where millennials are looking…and why.
- Salt Lake City
There’s a burgeoning tech scene that lures young people to companies such as Adobe and Electronic Arts. In fact, the city has come to be known as “Silicon Slopes,” with homes at one-third of Silicon Valley prices and plenty of skiing and boarding a short ride away. Salt Lake also has a low unemployment rate, at 2.9 percent, as well as numerous bike lanes and mountain bike trails.
- Miami
The sunshine is nice, but young folks also are attracted to a hopping scene with relatively affordable homes and decent job opportunities. Many find employment in tourism, international trading and construction—the entire region is enjoying a building boom. It’s not all work and no play, though. While the South Beach is known for its club scene, events such as the Calle Ocho Festival, Carnaval Miami and Art Basel Miami turn the entire city into a party. In addition to numerous art galleries and music venues, the Adrienne Arsht Center was opened in 2006 as the country’s second-largest performing arts center (after NYC’s Metropolitan Opera House). Up-and-coming neighborhoods like Little Haiti and North Miami are getting fresh interest from young buyers.
- Orlando
This fast-growing metro is getting a lot of serious attention from young people. You have beaches 45 minutes in any direction, along with plenty of entertainment and night life. There also are new mixed-use developments designed to appeal to both city-loving millennials and baby boomers, many of which are pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly. And Thornton Park, just east of downtown, also has become popular among younger homeowners seeking a unique historic neighborhood with cobbled streets and lined with bungalows. The Orlando metro area also leads Florida in job creation, adding 54,600 jobs in January, according to the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity.
- Seattle
Seattle checks off quite a few items on the millennial home buyer’s list: well-paid jobs (at Amazon, Microsoft, and Costco), quality coffeehouses around almost every corner, more than 50 bike trails and some of the country’s best tree-lined streets. It’s also a welcoming place for non-conforming young people. The city had one of the nation’s biggest turnouts for the Women’s March on Jan. 21, hometown titan Starbucks announced a plan to hire refugees and it’s the first major U.S. metro to approve a $15 minimum wage.
- Houston
A paycheck in Houston stretches further than in other metros. Houston has the second-highest pay on realtor.com’s list, at $62,300, after adjusting for the cost of living, trailing only San Jose, according to Forbes. Plus, Texas is one of the only seven states with no income tax. Granted, you may well find yourself fighting through Houston traffic, but several master-planned communities in the suburbs mix residential homes with businesses, so you may not even need to head downtown.
- Los Angeles
A lot of people who want to break into show business still come to L.A. But a more recent arrival, the tech industry, also is making itself known—especially the stretch of ocean-adjacent Westside known as “Silicon Beach.” Here you’ll find the parent company of Snapchat; the virtual-reality hardware/software producer Oculus; and a major outpost of Google. And despite a median home price of $672,000, there are pockets of L.A. that still are affordable. Northeast neighborhoods such as Highland Park and Atwater Village now are among the trendiest choices for laying down roots. Downtown L.A. also is vibrant again, and the newly expanded metro system offers options for getting around without a car. For even lower price tags, South Los Angeles is worth considering—the area is going through major changes, with new outdoor plazas, a farmer’s market, public gardens and more than 1,000 apartments and condos.
- Buffalo
Buffalo’s inexpensive housing—the median home price is only $158,000—is particularly attractive to young people with college debt. Jobs are flowing in, too. Elon Musk’s SolarCity factory alone, a solar energy equipment supplier, promises 3,000 jobs. Among cities of similar size, Buffalo also has a remarkable selection of cultural attractions. And after extensive renovation during the past decade or so, Buffalo has turned its waterfront into a recreation zone for skating and curling.
- Albany
One of America’s first cities, Albany embracing a shining new future. Faded industrial districts in North Albany have become thriving enclaves, with colorful street life. The historic downtown of the state capital has witnessed a resurgence, with numerous bars, hotels and restaurants. Albany also has six colleges, including the State University of New York at Albany. Until recently, graduates left for better jobs, but now that the city has rebranded itself as a budding tech hub, many choose to stay. Companies such as IBM and GlobalFoundries have set up research centers here, and the city is expected to fill 1,180 new software jobs by 2020, according to the New York Department of Labor.
- San Francisco
The city is filling up with ambitious young tech folks in the offices of Airbnb, Pinterest and lesser-known startups. They’re also present at company IPO parties or 20-something meetups in warehouse-turned-event spaces such as the Folsom Street Foundry. The entire city is basically a giant adult playground. Visit the Academy of Sciences with a drink in your hand during NightLife Thursdays, lie in Dolores Park on a sunny summer day or join a citywide scavenger hunt with your friends.
- San Jose
Ambitious young engineers come to work for companies such as Apple, Cisco and Netflix, and claim enviable perks such as taking their pets to work and free, chef-prepared lunches. San Jose was recently ranked the happiest city to work in by Forbes. A nearly endless supply of California sunshine and plenty of outdoor activities—a 30-minute drive can take you to nearby beaches and nature preserves—balance out the fast-paced work life.