Somehow, the findings from two analyzes are not aligning with the Millennial population in Dallas.
In 2019, Dallas grew its Millennial population — typically defined as the demographic between the ages of 20 and 34 — more than any other U.S. city, according to a Census Bureau analysis. The median age of a Dallas resident is 32, which is Millennial at it gets.
But in a recent RENTCafé study, Dallas is once again ranked last among Texas’ big cities in attracting Millennials in search of an apartment.
The best conclusion: Lots of Millennials reside in Dallas — they’re just not out apartment hunting.
RENTCafé ‘s study showed 40.8 percent of 13 million rental applicants in Dallas from 2015-2020 were Millennials.
In comparison, Austin, Houston, and San Antonio ranked third through fifth. RENTCafé cited Texas’ “lucrative oil sector, its booming health industry, and zero state income tax” as reasons the state represents in this study.
Austin, known for its high-tech industries and culture scene, had a 48.1 percent share of Millennial renters. Houston, which is credited for a diverse employment landscape, is at 45.6 percent. San Antonio is cited for its diverse economy, below-average unemployment rates, and affordable housing market.
An analysis of Census data by personal finance website SmartAsset finds that Dallas is the city of choice for Millennials with a net migration of 10,371 (43,159 incoming and 32,788 outgoing). According to SmartAsset, Austin ranks 21st on net migration of millennials.
RENTCafé lists Austin the No. 1 city in its category of Top 15 Next Millennial Renter Hotspots for 2020. Dallas isn’t ranked in this top 15, which is a bummer, but Houston and San Antonio made the list.
Commercial real-estate firm CBRE identifies nearly 170,000 tech workers in North Texas with the highest concentration of jobs around Uptown in Dallas and in Las Colinas and Plano.
Tech centers are obvious draws for young talent. From a national perspective, tech hubs are important with Seattle and San Francisco, the top two cities in the SmartAsset study. RENTCafé has Seattle (50.5 percent) and San Francisco (48.7 percent) 1-2 in rental applications.
The analyses have different methodologies and data values for Dallas. SmartAsset measured net migration while RENTCafé churned rental applications.
It’s interesting that they don’t exactly align to reach the same conclusion.
