Millennial Magnet
San Antonio shines among America's top 5 metros for millennials
What’s the best metro area in Texas for millennials? It’s San Antonio, according to a new ranking from apartment rental marketplace Apartment List.
San Antonio shows up at No. 4 on Apartment List’s ranking of the country’s best metro areas for millennials. The company graded the 75 largest metro areas in the U.S. in three categories — jobs, affordability, and livability — to calculate a score for each place.
San Antonio earned an overall letter grade of A-plus, thanks largely to its high numerical score for livability (85 out of 100). San Antonio’s scores for jobs (59) and affordability (57) weren't nearly as strong.
“Many metros score high in one or two categories, but few metros offer the ideal mix of a strong job market, affordable rent and home prices, and high livability scores,” Apartment List says.
Ranking above San Antonio are Pittsburgh, which holds the top spot; Provo, Utah, at No. 2; and Madison, Wisconsin, at No. 3.
In ninth place is Houston, with Dallas at No. 13 and Austin at No. 17. Overall, Houston earned an A-plus, with Dallas and Austin each receiving an A.
Austin posted high scores for jobs (72) and livability (82), but took a big hit in the affordability category (22). Apartment List says Austin and other millennial meccas like Denver, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Seattle garnered low scores for affordability.
“Despite strong job markets and high livability ratings, rents in these metros are too expensive for many millennials, and homeownership is far out of reach for most,” Apartment List says.
