Curiosity in transferring to Austin has waned and extra individuals are turning to the ‘burbs, new report finds
Despite being one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas in the country, interest in moving to Austin is becoming less of a city center and more of a suburban one.
A new study by moving experts moveBuddha examined data from Austin’s Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) from 2020 to 2022. Their analysts determined trends in when and where new residents are moving and what city they are from.
In short, most of the people who moved from Austin moved from the following areas: North Loop and Hyde Park (78751), south of Dessau between I-35 and 290 (78754), Tarrytown and Old West Austin, the at the river borders each side of Mopac (78703), the area south of Mopac and 183 with Crestview, Allandale, Wooten and North Shoal Creek (78757), and Jollyville (78729).
The zip code with the most “positive” search volume in 2022 was 78701 in downtown Austin. But moveBuddha does not credit this as a top destination for people to relocate, but as a standard zip code that travelers and tourists look for.
According to moveBuddha and the US Census Bureau, Leander is the true growth winner in the Austin area. It was named the fastest growing city in all of America between 2018 and 2019. The increasing popularity of the CapMetro rail line, which runs into the heart of downtown Austin, is probably a major factor in why Leander residents are embracing suburban life.
Given the influx of newcomers, it’s certainly no surprise that Californians love our city as much as we do. The study found that for every 100 Austin residents who were considering moving to San Francisco in 2020, a staggering 1,213 San Francisco residents were considering the opposite move. A similar ratio was found for residents of San Jose in Silicon Valley.
The top five US cities with residents moving to Austin are:
- San Jose, California
- San Francisco, California
- Chicago, Illinois
- Nashville, Tennessee
- Houston, Texas
Despite the influx of transplants, the waning interest in Austin since 2020 hasn’t just been limited to the Golden State. Residents in Atlanta, New York City, Brooklyn, and Washington DC were all drawn to the idea of moving to Austin in 2020, but as of 2022, they no longer share that desire.
On the other hand, many Austin residents are leaving the state for a city with similarly progressive values. According to the report, Denver is where Austinites are seeing the most interest in moving in recent years. Access to outdoor recreation, lots of local music, and enough “weird” vibes are the big draws for the city of Colorado.
Most of the concerns when residents leave the city have to do with rising living costs, such as rising rents and housing affordability.
The top five destinations for Austinites moving out of the city are:
- Denver, Colo
- New York City, New York
- Portland, Oregon
- Washington, D.C
- Raleigh, North Carolina
The full report and its methodology can be found at movebuddha.com.
