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60 | M REPORT O R I G I NAT I O N S E R V I C I N G DATA G O V E R N M E N T S E C O N DA R Y M A R K E T THE LATEST DATA Housing Trends: Millennials and Migration The largest change in the overall millennial population was recorded in Seattle, where an additional 80,000 millennials chose to make this Wash- ington metro area their home between 2016-2020. N early 72 million people living and working in the United States today are part of what's com- monly referred to as the millen- nial generation, which currently represents the most significant cohort of the country's demo- graphics. Additionally, given their outsized role within the nation's economy and influence on every- thing from culture to the social and political spheres, Commercial- Cafe has made an effort to track their movements and preferences throughout the years. Prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, a study was conducted to determine the top 10 most attractive metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) for mil- lennials across the United States. Now, two years later, there have been some major shake-ups in the ranking—from the meteoric rise of San Jose, California, to significant drops for Raleigh, North Carolina, and Denver—along with new entries making their way onto the list. In revisiting the previous as- sessment, CommercialCafe followed each entry's perfor- mance across these seven indicators: • Millennial population growth between 2016 and 2020 • Proportion of millennials in the overall population in 2020 • Regional price parity • Median millennial household earnings • Unemployment rate • Percentage of millennials with employer-based health insur- ance • Percentage of millennials in the labor force, with a bachelor's degree Key Findings: West Coast Metro Areas Hungry for Talent—and Ready to Pay For It While all of the locations on this list are exceptional in their abilities to attract millennials, performances vary significantly across most metrics. That said, here's a quick overview of the leading metros for individual indicators. One of the first findings that stood out in the study was that the top position for each indi- vidual indicator was no longer evenly distributed, with the San Jose, California, metro occupy- ing three of the leading spots. In fact, San Jose witnessed the most spectacular shift in the ranking, going from 10th place right up to the head of the list by earning a total of 77.8 out of 100 points. Most notably, the California metro area boasted the highest median earnings for millennial house- holds. It was followed by another West Coast MSA (San Francisco), as well as Boston and Seattle. However, the largest change in the overall millennial population was recorded in the Seattle metro, where the number of residents within that age group jumped by 13.7%. In raw numbers, that meant that an additional 80,000 millennials chose to make this Washington metro area their home between 2016 and 2020— bringing the total for that age group to roughly 668,000. Meanwhile, according to the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau, 17.4% of residents in the Austin metro residents were part of the millennial cohort, which landed the Texas MSA in the top spot for its share of millen- nials within its total population. And, even with all but two of its seven metrics below the ranking average, Austin still managed to maintain its runner-up position in the top 10. Next, the San Francisco metro landed in fifth place, gaining notable points for its second-highest median millennial household earnings. Educational attainment and health- care coverage levels for millennials were also within the top three for this California metro area. Finally, despite previously ranking first among the top metro areas for millennials, the Denver metro had to settle for sixth place this time round. This MSA's top performances across its demographic metrics—second place for the largest growth in its millennial population and third place for the highest percentage of millennials within the total popu- lation—were insufficient to garner it enough points to break into the top three. Moreover, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) numbers for March 2022, unemployment in the San Jose metro area stood at 2.5%. Although that was only the third-lowest rate among the 10 en- tries, it nevertheless proved useful in offsetting some of the region's more modest performances across other indicators, such as regional price parity (ninth place) and its millennial demographics. Specifically, between 2016-2020, the millennial population in the Austin metro area increased by 12.8%—the third-largest such in- crease within the ranking. Going by the numbers, that meant an additional 43,000 new residents within that age group chose