An average of about 34.3 million Americans packed up and moved each year over the last decade. Some did so to be in a better neighborhood, while others moved for job opportunities or another reason. And some U.S. cities have proven to be much better than others at drawing in new residents and appealing to those who are starting families.
Using metropolitan area level data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community survey, 24/7 Wall St. identified America’s fastest growing cities. We ranked metro areas based on population change from July 2010 to July 2019. Each metro area on this list has reported a population growth of at least 19% over that period.
We also considered supplemental data on median household income and median home value from the Census’ ACS. Data on annual unemployment rate and employment changes came from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Population change is the product of two factors — net migration and natural growth. Natural growth is the number of births over a given period less the number of deaths. Net migration is the difference between the number of new residents — either from other parts of the country or from abroad — and the number of residents who have left the area.
The Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area is located in central Florida just east of Tampa. Like the nearby Sarasota and Naples metro areas, Lakeland is growing rapidly. Driven almost entirely by migration, the number of people living in the metro area climbed by 122,700, or 20.4%, between 2010 and 2019.
Preliminary reports show that Florida’s popularity as a place to live has only grown since the COVID-19 pandemic. In recent months, Florida has been gaining an average of nearly 1,000 new residents per day. For many who move there, the absence of a state income tax and the climate are major pull factors.