Best 'American' Cities For Young Professionals

[Jularc]

Best Cities For Young Professionals


Matt Woolsey,
06.21.07

Head to the Big Apple, and your chances of getting the corner office might not be as far off as you think.

That's because New York City tops our list as the No. 1 city for young professionals.

That likely comes as a shock to, well, no one. Many of America's best companies, as determined by Forbes rankings of the best 400 big businesses and best 200 small businesses, including financial giant Goldman Sachs and media conglomerate News Corp. are in New York. Throw in New York's bars, clubs and world-class dining, and you get a city teaming with young professionals.


Behind The Numbers


Our list was compiled by tracking where the graduates of top universities across the country ended up 10 years after commencement; where the best business opportunities exist; which cities had the most young and unmarried people; and which cities paid young professionals the best.

To see where graduates of elite schools chose to pursue their careers, we looked at Class of 1997 alumni location data from six elite universities across the country--Harvard, Princeton, Duke, Stanford, Northwestern and Rice. The data indicated where graduates have settled 10 years later, and where their professional lives have matured.

We then excluded alumni that remained close to school. Harvard grads in Massachusetts--nixed; Dukies who stayed in North Carolina--gone; Stanford Cardinals roosting in California--tossed. The goal: to determine which cities offer such strong opportunities for young professionals that they're willing to pick up and move across the country for them.

Some cities are bigger than others, of course. So we adjusted where elite grads ended up against overall population size to measure the respective concentrations of young professionals. This allowed smaller cities such as Portland and Austin to compete equally with heavyweights such as New York and Los Angeles.

Then we stirred the locations of prized jobs into the mix. Each year, Forbes selects America's 400 best big businesses and 200 best small businesses. We used the locations of those 600 companies to determine which cities had the best professional opportunities for the under-35 set.

Money is important too. To figure out how far yearly income will go, we measured cities' variations in starting salary using data from New York-based Mercer Human Resource Consulting and adjusted it for cost of living with our own Forbes index; the idea being that the more greenhorn grads a city can attract with a decent salary to cost of living ratio, the more likely they'll stay and develop in that area.

Of course, even the most driven young professionals need to let off steam. With that in mind, the final metric was measured which cities had the highest share of never-married people in their 20s and 30s. Never married is an important qualifier. For example, of the 40 largest cities, Salt Lake City has the third-highest population share of people ages 25 to 34, but its standing as No. 27 in the never-married category really puts a damper on the nightlife.

The bottom 10 cities were brought down by a variety of causes. Salary to cost of living submarined Miami, Norfolk, Va., and San Antonio. The inability to attract top grads and top companies hurt Detroit and Las Vegas, and all our measurements converged on Tampa, Fla., beating it down to last place on our list.


© 2007 Forbes.com LLC™ (http://www.forbes.com/2007/06/21/cities-jobs-young-forbeslife-cx_mw_0621realestate.html?partner=forbeslife_newsletter)

[Jularc]

Top 20:


1. New York, N.Y.
Manhattan had far and away the highest concentration of elite-school graduates. Had it been broken out as a separate city, Brooklyn would have ranked sixth on its own in this measure. New York also dominated the rankings of best big and small businesses, and the Big Apple's population was fifth in terms of percentage young and never married.

2. San Francisco, Calif.
Despite disqualifying all the Stanford grads who settled in San Fran, the City by the Bay finished second in attracting graduates. It placed 16th in our companies rankings, ninth in the never-married category, and its No. 1 initial salary ranking helped compensate for a high cost of living.

3. Atlanta, Ga.
Most people don't associate elite grads with Atlanta, but they should. A ranking of eighth in our businesses measure and a high salary to cost of living ratio put Atlanta in the top three.

4. Los Angeles, Calif.
The city may be synonymous with smog and sprawl, but Los Angeles has an undeniable pull. The city ranks fifth in best companies, 12th in grads and second in its share of the young and never married. Salaries to cost of living are reasonable.

5. Washington, D.C.
The District is in the middle of the pack for best companies, but the number of prestigious jobs on Capitol Hill helps make the city the third most desired location for young professionals. D.C. is seventh in its never-married population and entry-level college grad jobs pay 10% more than the national average.

6. Boston, Mass.
If the Harvard grads retained by Boston factored in, the city would have climbed well above sixth in our young professional concentration measure. A very young city, it has the fourth-highest share of never married people in their 20s and mid-30s, and the city's high salaries balance out its high cost of living. Boston tied D.C. for 17th on the best companies measure.

7. Seattle, Wash.
The Emerald City was 13th in our best big and small business standing and ranked an impressive fourth in retaining the country's brightest graduates from the Class of 1997. Middle of the pack in never-married 20- to 35-year-olds, Seattle's local economy and housing market have benefited from east and west coasters accustomed to life in more expensive cities.

8. Minneapolis, Minn.
Conventional wisdom says Chicago leads the Midwest as a place for young professionals. Not so. Minneapolis ranked sixth in our best businesses ranking and ninth for its alumni distribution. Fifteenth in percentage of population young and never married, Minneapolis is tied for the fourth-best income to cost of living score.

9. Philadelphia, Pa.
Being a university town certainly benefits Philly. Tied for 23rd in the number of best big and small businesses, Philadelphia is the 11th most popular destination for grads 10 years out of school and has the 11th highest share of never-married people between the ages of 20 and 35. Salaries aren't as high compared to east coast brethren New York and Boston, but cost of living isn't either.

10. Denver, Colo.
Just clipping Austin and Portland for 10th place, Denver offers recent grads the list's best salary to cost of living ratio and finished 10th in attracting 1997's elite alumni. Those two scores balanced out the mediocre 23rds the city rated in presence of the best big and small businesses and the percentage of young never-marrieds.

11. Austin, Texas
For a good time, head to Austin; just don't expect it to pay very well. The live music hub and budding tech capital tied for 23rd in the number of best big and small businesses and achieved our lowest rating for salary to cost of living for recent grads. Both low scores weren't enough to bring down its No. 1 never-married score and No. 7 alumni distribution score.

12. Portland, Ore.
Portland may be growing, but it still has a ways to go. Ranked eighth in 1997 graduate data, and better than the mean for salary to cost of living, Portland was hampered by a rank of 27th for best big and small businesses and a rank of 25th for its young never-married population.

13. Charlotte, N.C.
The local economy in Charlotte has been growing at a rapid clip for some time. It ranks 13th in number of best businesses and has an excellent ratio of starting salary to cost of living. If its economy continues on its present course, it will likely attract more young professionals. At present, it rates 19th in grads 10 years out of school and 22nd in never-married young people.

14. St. Louis, Mo.
A very high share of the best 400 big businesses and best 200 small businesses call St. Louis home. In that measure, it ranked sixth. In attracting the cream of the graduate crop, it clocked in at 16th. The never-married population was good for 24th, and salary to cost of living hovers right around the national mean.

15. Providence, R.I.
A ranking of 30th in the number of best big and small businesses and a low salary to cost of living ratio dragged down what were otherwise impressive scores. Providence was 14th in the number of 1997 alumni it has attracted and sixth in its percentage of never-married young people.

16. Chicago, Ill.
In terms of raw numbers, Chicago attracts plenty of young professionals, but based on its size, it ranks 35th. Those who live there aren't married--the city ranks 8th in that category--and it is third overall for best big and small businesses.

17. Raleigh, N.C.
Twenty-first in 1997 alumni and 27th in best big and small businesses, Raleigh gets a boost from its No. 12 ranking for the number of never-married 20- to 35-year-olds and its relatively high salary to cost of living ratio.

18. Cincinnati, Ohio
Ranked 17th in number of big and small businesses and 15th for its collection of young professionals, Cincinnati places 33rd in the number of never-marrieds and has a favorable ratio of starting salaries to living expenses.

19. San Diego, Calif.
San Diego ranks as the 11th most popular destination for our best-rated 400 big companies and best 200 small ones. Our grad data place it 27th, and of the city's young professionals, it has the 16th highest population of people who have yet to walk down the aisle.

20. Milwaukee, Wis.
Tied with San Diego for 11th on the businesses measure, Milwaukee sits at 26th for its concentration of young professionals and 13th for the young never-married crowd. Salaries are low for students just out of school, neutralizing the boost from the city's low cost of living.


© 2007 Forbes.com LLC™ (http://www.forbes.com/2007/06/21/cities-jobs-young-forbeslife-cx_mw_0621realestate.html?partner=forbeslife_newsletter)

[Jularc]

21 to 40:


21. Pittsburgh, Pa.
High marks for entrepreneurs, as Pittsburgh ranked 9th for best big and small businesses. A rank of 20th for attracting young professionals and rank of 34th for highest never-married population dragged down the score for this affordable city.

22. Nashville, Tenn.
Music City has a high number of young professionals, scoring 13th in its ability to attract the Class of 1997. An average ranking of 21st for businesses and 26th for its share of never-married 20- and 30-somethings wasn't aided by the low salary to cost of living ratio for recent graduates.

23. Columbus, Ohio
For attracting young people, it helps to have the biggest university in the country in Ohio State. Columbus did well with the overall young population and the percentage of never-married 20- to 35-year olds, ranking 14th. However, a low score of 27th for businesses helps to push away those in their early 30s--in the Class of 1997 distribution, Columbus ranked 24th.

24. New Orleans, La.
A high cost of living to low salaries and the lack of top big and small businesses may be influenced by problems stemming from Hurricane Katrina. In our other metrics, NOLA did well, 17th in attracting young professionals and third for its percentage of never-married people in their 20s and 30s.

25. Houston, Texas
There's a lot of money in Houston. Due in large part to the energy sector, it ranks second for excellent big and small businesses. However, it is 38th, behind only Detroit and Phoenix, in its ability to attract alumni. It ranks 29th for its young never-married population, and based on salary to cost of living, life is slightly less expensive than the national mean.

26. Cleveland, Ohio
The 13th most-desired location for our best-rated big and small businesses, Cleveland sinks a touch with its 22nd rank for young professionals and falls more with its 32nd ranking for percentage of never-married people aged 20 to 35. A relatively low starting salary to cost of living ratio doesn't help.

27. Phoenix, Ariz.
Phoenix does especially well given its association with an older population. Ranked ninth for our best big and small businesses, it takes a heavy hit from its 39th rank in young professional graduates. It ranks 18th for its never-married young population.

28. Sacramento, Calif.
Not having a single one of our best 400 big businesses or best 200 small businesses really hurt Sacramento's standing, and the 34th ranking for its share of high-powered young graduates doesn't help either. The silver lining: a rank of 10th for its never-married 20- to 35-year-olds.

29. Dallas, Texas
The Big D nabbed the fourth overall ranking for businesses, but fell on its 37th ranking for young professionals and its 36th ranking for the never-married population there. As for starting salaries and cost of living, Dallas hits the national mean.

30. Salt Lake City, Utah
A good place to live by many measures, Salt Lake City did not perform well in our ratings. Boasting the third-highest population of people aged 20 to 35, it has only the 27th-highest number of never-married people ages 20 to 35. Combine a rank of 23rd for best businesses and a rank of 28th for young professionals, and the result is an overall score of 30th.

31. Greensboro, N.C.
For what recent grads can expect to make in salary, Greensboro is a shade expensive. It's rank of 30th in best big and small businesses and 30th for its never-married population pull down its rank of 23rd for young professionals.

32. Miami, Fla.
Very few grads from the institutions we tracked found their way to Miami. In that category, the city ranked 33rd. For big and small businesses, it notched a ranking of 17th and for its never-married population, 31st. Also, Miami is slightly more expensive than starting salaries allow.

33. Las Vegas, Nev.
Vegas was 36th for attracting young professionals from the Class of 1997 and 30th for how many of the best big and small businesses set up shop in the city. An average rank of 21st for its never-married set wasn't enough to bring up its score.

34. Norfolk, Va.
Life can get expensive in Norfolk for those just out of college. Salary levels are among the lowest of the cities we measured, and costs aren't cheap enough to act as a counter-balance. Additionally, a ranking of 30th for businesses and 37th for its never-married population pushed it down in our rankings.

35. Orlando, Fla.
Disney World apparently isn't as attractive to people when they're 30 as it was when they were 10. Orlando's tie for 30th place in best businesses and its score of 31st for young professionals dragged down a market with a low salary to cost of living ratio.

36. San Antonio, Texas
A middle-of-the-pack 21st ranking for its best big and small businesses presence and a mediocre 29th for attracting young professionals wasn't enough to save San Antonio from its 35th rank in never-married population and its low starting salaries for recent graduates.

37. Kansas City, Mo.
Tied for last in our businesses metric and second-to-last in its percentage of never-married 20- to 35-year-olds, Kansas City turned in a respectable 25th as a place of attraction for young professionals. Slightly lower-than-average salaries were balanced by the low cost of living.

38. Detroit, Mich.
The fact that things aren't going well for Detroit is not a secret. It rated 30th for its number of best big and small businesses and dead last for the number of young professionals it has been able to retain. A rank of 28th for its never-married population and a reasonable cost of living saved it from grabbing the bottom spot.

39. Indianapolis, Ind.
Indianapolis ranked second-to-last for its big and small businesses, 30th for the number of 1997 elite grads who called it home, and 38th for the percentage of 20- to 35-year-olds who have never been married.

40. Tampa, Fla.
A nice place for a vacation, around a quarter of houses in Tampa are investment or second-home properties. As for people who live there full-time, the city ranks 32nd for young professional concentration, last for its never-married population, second-to-last for big and small businesses and, to top it all off, has a high cost of living for what a recent grad can expect to earn.


© 2007 Forbes.com LLC™ (http://www.forbes.com/2007/06/21/cities-jobs-young-forbeslife-cx_mw_0621realestate.html?partner=forbeslife_newsletter)

[krudmonk]

There are actually no young people or jobs in San Jose...

[ocman]

4. Los Angeles, Calif.
The city may be synonymous with smog and sprawl, but Los Angeles has an undeniable pull. The city ranks fifth in best companies, 12th in grads and second in its share of the young and never married. Salaries to cost of living are reasonable.


LA can never simply get a compliment. It always has to precede with an insult.

[pico44]

No real surprises on this list, except maybe St. Louis. I would have guessed LA at number two, so that is a bit of a shock. If this list had always existed, I suspect New York would have ranked number one every year since the turn of the last century.

[Evergrey]

let's hear it for the never-married population! :rock:

I'll try to remain unmarried for the next 10 years to boost my city's ranking in Forbes!

[B]3. Atlanta, Ga.
Most people don't associate elite grads with Atlanta, but they should. A ranking of eighth in our businesses measure and a high salary to cost of living ratio put Atlanta in the top three.™[/URL]

Interestingly, however, Metro Atlanta's income growth rates 90th out of the top 100 metros over the past quarter-century and its per capita personal income is only 101% of the national average.
http://www.bizjournals.com/specials/pages/95.html

[WonderlandPark]

No real surprises on this list, except maybe St. Louis. I would have guessed LA at number two, so that is a bit of a shock. If this list had always existed, I suspect New York would have ranked number one every year since the turn of the last century.

L.A. is not a headquarters city, cities many times smaller like the Twin Cities or Denver have more Fortune 500 companies.

[BTinSF]

^^^The era of Fortune 500 companies being in any city may be closing. Other than a few industries where the herd instinct has value like finance and the law, they are moving out to small towns and suburbs. Southern CA is full of such places and the LA basin is full of entrepreneurial companies that may not yet make the Fortune 500 list but may someday and will make you rich soon if you work for them.

[ginsan2]

Why is marriage included in this survey? What does that have to do with anything?

[10023]

Fortune 500 companies don't really matter. They're bragging rights for city offices of commerce, that's it. Does New York's dynamism come from its Fortune 500 companies? No, it comes from its thousands of smaller, mostly private firms, or units of companies that aren't even headquartered here but have a presence. Law firms, investment banks, hedge funds, private equity firms, advertising agencies, publishing companies, etc. Most are not Fortune 500 companies, and of those that are, many are not based in New York but still contribute more to the city than its own Fortune 500 businesses (i.e., Bank of America is based in Charlotte and Deutsche Bank is based in Frankfurt, but both have more of an economic impact on New York than many Fortune 500 companies based here).

An aside: As an investment banker, I always want to laugh at these lists of "biggest banking cities" that place Charlotte, NC at #2. Charlotte is not a banking city. It has two large financial institutions that have the senior executives based, for the most part, in the city. Besides that they're towers full of back office functions. Their actual banking operations (and I mean real banking as opposed to retail branches) are concentrated in real banking cities like New York, Boston, Chicago and San Francisco. And Charlotte's ranking is based purely on the presence of two big companies; real financial centers derive many times the number of jobs and economic impact from the thousands of small firms that make them financial centers than a couple of big corporations that have a lot of checking accounts.

[NewYorkYankee]

Once again, NYC is the place to be:banana: .

Note: all Blue cities as well.....

[Buckeye Native 001]

Cincinnati made the top 20 in something and it wasn't a negative list? Surely, you jest. :haha:

[Red UM Rebel]

let's hear it for the never-married population! :rock:



Interestingly, however, Metro Atlanta's income growth rates 90th out of the top 100 metros over the past quarter-century and its per capita personal income is only 101% of the national average.
http://www.bizjournals.com/specials/pages/95.html



I do not know how to explain your point other than there are tons and tons of non-skilled laborers in Atlanta and the current portion of young professionals is still relatively small. I do know that everyone going into professional careers from Ole Miss tries to get into Atlanta if they desire to stay in the South, and they are competing with Harvard,Yale,etc. grads for the jobs.

[chrizow]

this study is fatally flawed in my opinion by the fact they chose to focus ONLY on the alums of hyper-elite universities. wtf?

[fflint]

this study is fatally flawed in my opinion by the fact they chose to focus ONLY on the alums of hyper-elite universities. wtf?
Right, and even still, they left out most of the hyper-elite universities--they didn't include Dartmouth, Columbia, Berkeley, MIT, etc. This ranking would be more credible if they'd crunched the alum data for, say, the top 20 or 30 u/g universities in the nation.

The ranking would also be more credible if they'd managed to finesse the data a bit--although admittedly this might be impracticable--regarding students' place of origin in relation to their university. What I mean is this: many graduates from elite universities were admitted to several top colleges right after high school, and picked their eventual alma mater precisely because of where it was situated in specific relation to local career prospects. Schools like NYU and Columbia, the University of Chicago, Georgetown, UCLA and USC, etc. draw students from all over the nation in large part because those students intend to start their careers in NYC, Chicago, DC, and LA respectively--but those students are disqualified from this ranking even though they would shed light on which cities truly are "best" in the US for young professionals.

[mhays]

They also screwed up any school/city that's far from a state line. Someone moving from Harvard to Providence was counted, but they didn't count people moving from Stanford to LA.

[UrbanSophist]

Once again, NYC is the place to be:banana: .

Note: all Blue cities as well.....

There are cities that aren't blue?

[modkris]

Narrow, pointless, worst list ever!

[Master Shake]

LA can never simply get a compliment. It always has to precede with an insult.

Amen, brother.

[Master Shake]

So in NYC you will be just a number with every other Harvard graduate, how is this better?

I think Chicago is the best followed by Atlanta. Growing economies combined with lower expenses.

[antinimby]

let's hear it for the never-married population! :rock:
I'll try to remain unmarried for the next 10 years to boost my city's ranking in Forbes!
[QUOTE=Jularc;2922926][B]3. Atlanta, Ga.
Most people don't associate elite grads with Atlanta, but they should. A ranking of eighth in our businesses measure and a high salary to cost of living ratio put Atlanta in the top three.™[/URL]:haha: I think you will go into the numbers for Pittsburgh and not Atlanta like you wanted.

[pico44]

So in NYC you will be just a number with every other Harvard graduate, how is this better?

I think Chicago is the best followed by Atlanta. Growing economies combined with lower expenses.


Of course Chicago is best Mastershake. Of course it is.

:yes:

[pico44]

Why is marriage included in this survey? What does that have to do with anything?

Have you ever known someone before and after they got married? It is probably the most important part of the survey. I think people are missing the point of the list. The point being, where does one have the greatest opportunity to run across America's brightest, most gainfully/successfully employed and most available young adults. That is all.

[dimondpark]

^^^The era of Fortune 500 companies being in any city may be closing. Other than a few industries where the herd instinct has value like finance and the law, they are moving out to small towns and suburbs. Southern CA is full of such places and the LA basin is full of entrepreneurial companies that may not yet make the Fortune 500 list but may someday and will make you rich soon if you work for them.

Well, considering their record profits I dont think they are going anywhere but I started working for a F50 fresh out of college where I learned hands on about management-when it merged with another company I left for a rival F50 where I learned the way it was done in NY and then decided to start my own company which has been far more lucrative and rewarding.

[nath05]

I think this survey is especially valid because it ranks my city high and several cities I don't like low. Huzzah:D

[StethJeff]

LA can never simply get a compliment. It always has to precede with an insult.

No kidding! And as someone else mentioned above, they don't even count our Stanford graduates simply because they're in-state (over 350 miles away!!) :koko:

Why is the world full of LA haters?!:hell:

[alleystreetindustry]

atlanta makes alot of sense. we are booming and on top of that our city is an african-american mecca. the city is surrounded by colleges that lure new people to the city, of which many decide to stay because they see what atlanta has. i say in 5-10 years we are going to boom even more.

[ctman987]

Glad to see Providence, RI made it onto the list representing small and mid size northeastern cities. Many northeastern cities have hit hard times and are struggling to reinvent themselves but Providence is slowly succeding in making a new name for itself. Years ago noone wanted anything to do with Providence - the largest city in Rhode Island just 30 minutes from Boston.

Today though there is a huge convention center with a recently expanded Westin hotel that now includes condos, the Dunkin Donuts Center arena, the Providence Place Mall (the most upscale mall in the state). Across the street from all of this GTECH recently built its new headquarters - relocating from the suburbs back downtown. Steps away is the state capital, hundreds of new condos and apartments, renovated hotels including the new Hotel Providence. College Hill is still home to Brown and RISD and downtown is home to Johnson & Wales. Downtown Providence is truly looking up and its nice to see it on this list in the top 20 passing cities such as New Haven, Hartford, Stamford, Albany, Springfield, Bridgeport, Buffalo and Syracuse.

[10023]

Right, and even still, they left out most of the hyper-elite universities--they didn't include Dartmouth, Columbia, Berkeley, MIT, etc. This ranking would be more credible if they'd crunched the alum data for, say, the top 20 or 30 u/g universities in the nation.

The ranking would also be more credible if they'd managed to finesse the data a bit--although admittedly this might be impracticable--regarding students' place of origin in relation to their university. What I mean is this: many graduates from elite universities were admitted to several top colleges right after high school, and picked their eventual alma mater precisely because of where it was situated in specific relation to local career prospects. Schools like NYU and Columbia, the University of Chicago, Georgetown, UCLA and USC, etc. draw students from all over the nation in large part because those students intend to start their careers in NYC, Chicago, DC, and LA respectively--but those students are disqualified from this ranking even though they would shed light on which cities truly are "best" in the US for young professionals.

This is very true. I've personally never heard of someone going to Stanford for an MBA who didn't cite the fact that it's on the West Coast and they wanted to work in the Bay Area. And it's even more the case for schools that are less elite. Stanford is one of the top 4 business schools in the country, so people will want to go there regardless of location, but location is undeniably a factor for just about anyone going to Berkeley or UCLA. There are people who come to school in the Northeast because it's a good place to be if you want to end up with a New York or Boston firm. I can't imagine it's as big a factor for U Chicago, since no one is really clamoring for a foothold in the Midwest and the school's particular location in the city isn't the most attractive for potential young professionals, but having top universities in town certainly helps attract people.

[fflint]

This is very true. I've personally never heard of someone going to Stanford for an MBA who didn't cite the fact that it's on the West Coast and they wanted to work in the Bay Area. And it's even more the case for schools that are less elite. Stanford is one of the top 4 business schools in the country, so people will want to go there regardless of location, but location is undeniably a factor for just about anyone going to Berkeley or UCLA. There are people who come to school in the Northeast because it's a good place to be if you want to end up with a New York or Boston firm. I can't imagine it's as big a factor for U Chicago, since no one is really clamoring for a foothold in the Midwest and the school's particular location in the city isn't the most attractive for potential young professionals, but having top universities in town certainly helps attract people.
Oh, I'd imagine the University of Chicago and Northwestern are chock full of students from out of state who want to make a go of it in Chicagoland.

[verictson]

Oh, I'd imagine the University of Chicago and Northwestern are chock full of students from out of state who want to make a go of it in Chicagoland.

that was me. i got bored of the city and transfered to NYU. yipppyyyyy :banana:

[Drew-Ski]

Do not forget that lifestyle plays a big role in relocation of young professionals....Read exerpt from study below


Young Professionals Flocking to Portland
The influx of young, educated adults holds enviable potential for future job growth

The Portland area sports the country's fourth-fastest growth rate among college-educated 25- to 34-year-olds. Portland also tallies the eighth-fastest growth rate among 25- to 34-year-olds regardless of education.

In a new report titled, The Young and the Restless: How Portland Competes for Talent, Portland economist Joe Cortright and Memphis, Tenn., urban consultant Carol Coletta document and examine the continuing migration of young, well-educated people to the Portland area. Attracting such "young talent" helps guarantee future job growth, as those people start companies of their own, Ms. Coletta said.

The study illuminates two trends that distinguish Portland from other cities the pair examined. The researchers found that Portland's population that is college-educated and ages 25 to 34 is growing at five times the national rate. "That's a phenomenal number," Cortright said. The researchers also found that Portland's proportion of young educated residents is much higher in the city's central areas than in other cities with similar geography.

The study combines data from the 1990 Census and 2000 Census, the 2002 American Community survey and driver's license surrender lists. The researchers also conducted a series of focused interviews with young, educated people in five cities, including Portland.

From 1990 to the present, Cortright said, the study shows Portland faring better than many other cities when it comes to attracting young, educated people. The findings reinforce the data about the influx of young educated people that emerged from the 2000 Census. According to economic development officials, this segment of the population is a crucial ingredient in determining the economic vitality of a metropolitan region.

[ignatius]

This is now dated (2000 is so long ago) but it shows actual net migration of young, educated over 25...

Metro NetMigration Rate
New York 25,131 37.4
Los Angeles 32,998 92.3
Chicago 18,750 73.1
Washington–Baltimore 25,469 102.4
San Francisco–Oakland–San Jose 49,468 198.9
Philadelphia –2,591 –16.9
Boston 4,736 21.9
Detroit –1,184 –10.2
Dallas–Fort Worth 23,849 236.2
Houston 11,404 139.2
Atlanta 31,887 282.2
Miami–Fort Lauderdale 5,764 75.6
Seattle 17,554 194.5
Phoenix 13,768 250.5
Minneapolis–St. Paul 10,249 123.5
Cleveland–Akron –963 –15.8
San Diego 7,083 99.5
St. Louis 616 11.6
Denver–Boulder 19,679 264
Tampa–St. Petersburg 4,485 116.1

Here are metros that had highest rate of net-migration..

Metro NetMigration Rate
Naples, FL 1,036 483.2
Las Vegas 6,844 408.7
Charlotte 10,091 344.3
Atlanta 31,887 282.2
Portland, OR 11,329 268.4
Denver 19,679 264.0
Phoenix 13,768 250.5
Dallas 23,849 236.2
Boise City 1,432 231.7
Portland, ME 1,427 214.7
San Francisco 49,468 198.9
Seattle 17,554 194.5
Kansas City 6,462 184.8
Orlando 5,885 181.4
Myrtle Beach 446 164.5
Fort Myers 583 160.7
Salinas 717 157.7
West Palm Beach–Boca Raton 2,738 153.3
Nashville 4,300 151.3



http://www.census.gov/prod/2003pubs/censr-12.pdf

Haven't been able to find anything more recent. Things are very different now as young pros are now leaving some hotspots of the 90s for mid-size markets.

[Modern Design]

NYC is definitely not a best place for young professionals....It´s so expensive....

[verictson]

NYC is definitely not a best place for young professionals....It´s so expensive....

i know tons of young professionals that are doing quite well here. I lived in chicago before nyc and i'm making 3x the amount while spending about 2x on rent as well as living in nyc is about 10x more fun then in chicago. so its a big win situation. people keeps complaining about living costs in nyc, however the city keeps growing and attracts some of the best talents in all areas so something is going right....

[JManc]

this study is fatally flawed in my opinion by the fact they chose to focus ONLY on the alums of hyper-elite universities. wtf?

yep. apparently no one gives a rat's ass where us state school alumni end up.

[mhays]

^^^The era of Fortune 500 companies being in any city may be closing. Other than a few industries where the herd instinct has value like finance and the law, they are moving out to small towns and suburbs. Southern CA is full of such places and the LA basin is full of entrepreneurial companies that may not yet make the Fortune 500 list but may someday and will make you rich soon if you work for them.

I disagree with this assessment, with my city as an example. Here, more headquarters are moving in than moving out.

Downtown Seattle is home to WaMu, Amazon, Starbucks, Safeco, Nordstrom, and Expeditors. Every one is a multi-billion dollar company that has been growing their Downtown facilities. Safeco recently relocated Downtown. A number of smaller but still significant firms have moved from the suburbs to Downtown in recent years, like Corbis and Rosetta. Tech companies are big, like Real Networks and Zillow.

I'll count Downtown Bellevue because it's becoming a legitimate second downtown. Downtown Bellevue's new headquarters include Eddie Bauer (just moved in), Symetra (spun off from Safeco a few years ago), and Expedia (moving into a building that's u-c). Also, Microsoft is going from virtually zero space to 1,000,000 sf in the span of probably 18 months, with one space just occupied and two more highrises underway. Also, PACCAR (Kenworth and Peterbilt) has always been based there.

Downtown Tacoma has Russell, known for its stock indexes.

It's all about lifestyle and the ease of recruiting. Workers, particularly young and creative types, want to be in downtowns. Many, including some senior folks and lots of young ones, like being near transit and/or within walking or bicycling distance. It's crucial to have lots of lunch places and somewhere to go after work occasionally.

More on-topic, I'd say the ability to live an urban lifestyle would be the #1 criteria for many young professionals.

[Modern Design]

i know tons of young professionals that are doing quite well here. I lived in chicago before nyc and i'm making 3x the amount while spending about 2x on rent as well as living in nyc is about 10x more fun then in chicago. so its a big win situation. people keeps complaining about living costs in nyc, however the city keeps growing and attracts some of the best talents in all areas so something is going right....

1:depending in what area one work(finance, film ...) nyc "would" be a good choice
2:unless you making at least 150k a year , you aint having a good life.

3:" attracts some of the best talents in all areas so something is going right" No not in all areas, let´s not be overconfident.

4:living in nyc is about 10x more fun then in chicago..hell no men ..you wish...Chicago is just like NYC ,but smaller, cleaner, better skyline and friendlier...

[Steely Dan]

4:living in nyc is about 10x more fun then in chicago..hell no men ..you wish...Chicago is just like NYC ,but smaller, cleaner, better skyline and friendlier...

if verictson feels that NYC is 10x more fun than chicago, he's entitled to his opinion. there is no need for your retort, it accomplishes nothing other than sending this thread down the forbidden path to vs. territory.

no one should bother carrying on the discussion of NYC vs. chicago because all other subsequent posts furthering that topic in this thread will be deleted.

now back to the topic of the thread :)

[verictson]

1:depending in what area one work(finance, film ...) nyc "would" be a good choice
2:unless you making at least 150k a year , you aint having a good life.

3:" attracts some of the best talents in all areas so something is going right" No not in all areas, let´s not be overconfident.

4:living in nyc is about 10x more fun then in chicago..hell no men ..you wish...Chicago is just like NYC ,but smaller, cleaner, better skyline and friendlier...

lets not fight now.... the fun part is all relative to your likings

[BTinSF]

I disagree with this assessment, with my city as an example. Here, more headquarters are moving in than moving out.

Downtown Seattle is home to WaMu, Amazon, Starbucks, Safeco, Nordstrom, and Expeditors. Every one is a multi-billion dollar company that has been growing their Downtown facilities.

Seattle has, admittedly, been fairly lucky, but the luck may or may not last. WaMu has been a takeover target for years (by somebody like JP Morgan or Citi wanting more of a west coast footprint and more retail branches). Starbucks is lately down on its luck--slow growth--and we'll see if it can pull out by rapid expansion in China which is its strategy. Nordstrom is on a roll, but department stores in general have a dubious future (although high end like Nordies is undoubtedly better than mid-market like Federated).

Amazon is an enigma (because it's basically retail with a "tech" disguise)--but I'll ask you: How many people do they actually employ in downtown Seattle? If they are paying top dollar downtown rents for back office functions like order fulfillment, they are crazy--nobody else is doing this any more. Same goes for the others you mentioned.

Lately, the pattern is to let the excutives have their downtown luxury suite but get the drones to a suburban office park. And a few tightfisted companies like San Francisco's Chevron have moved the whole operation to the burbs. Companies who go against thnis trend--in Seattle or anywhere--will probably be punished for it.

[BTinSF]

1:depending in what area one work(finance, film ...) nyc "would" be a good choice
2:unless you making at least 150k a year , you aint having a good life.

3:" attracts some of the best talents in all areas so something is going right" No not in all areas, let´s not be overconfident.

4:living in nyc is about 10x more fun then in chicago..hell no men ..you wish...Chicago is just like NYC ,but smaller, cleaner, better skyline and friendlier...

Are you miserable? Hard to believe someone with this sort of grammar and spelling makes "at least 150k" and has a "good life". Just an observation. :rolleyes:

[verictson]

Are you miserable? Hard to believe someone with this sort of grammar and spelling makes "at least 150k" and has a "good life". Just an observation. :rolleyes:

LOL, I apoligize for my grammer and spelling errors however english is my fourth language. How about you? whats your deal? and if I do make more then you wouldnt that just be peachy?

[mhays]

Seattle has, admittedly, been fairly lucky, but the luck may or may not last. WaMu has been a takeover target for years (by somebody like JP Morgan or Citi wanting more of a west coast footprint and more retail branches). Starbucks is lately down on its luck--slow growth--and we'll see if it can pull out by rapid expansion in China which is its strategy. Nordstrom is on a roll, but department stores in general have a dubious future (although high end like Nordies is undoubtedly better than mid-market like Federated).

Amazon is an enigma (because it's basically retail with a "tech" disguise)--but I'll ask you: How many people do they actually employ in downtown Seattle? If they are paying top dollar downtown rents for back office functions like order fulfillment, they are crazy--nobody else is doing this any more. Same goes for the others you mentioned.

Lately, the pattern is to let the excutives have their downtown luxury suite but get the drones to a suburban office park. And a few tightfisted companies like San Francisco's Chevron have moved the whole operation to the burbs. Companies who go against thnis trend--in Seattle or anywhere--will probably be punished for it.

You're right that it's a shaky situation. Always has been. But all of those companies have large presences in/around Downtown.

Amazon doesn't put warehouses in Downtown Seattle, but they do have a lot of office space. They're in multiple leases now totaling 870,000 sf according to the first article I found, dated June 22. The same article reported that they're negotiating 900,000-1,000,000 sf in South Lake Union, the fast-growing lowrise district on the north side of Downtown. The reporter noted that it's unclear what they'll do with their current space.

This region has four major office districts -- where the offices are today, and where the new offices are being built: Downtown Seattle, Downtown Bellevue, Redmond, and the I-90 Corridor. The first two are expensive highrise districts. The other two are lowrise areas, but even they typically have much of their parking below-grade and much of the rest in above-grade garages, because land is scarce and expensive. The Seattle area doesn't have major areas of "cheap" offices (unless by SF standards!). Actually it's a mystery why most of our office construction is in expensive areas, and our highest vacancy rates tend to be in the cheaper areas.

[Modern Design]

Are you miserable? Hard to believe someone with this sort of grammar and spelling makes "at least 150k" and has a "good life". Just an observation. :rolleyes:

Well , you may have missed that i´m from Brazil, we speak portuguese, which has nothing to do with english.Plus i don´t have time, to check my spelling everytime i write something.I´m trying to do my best to write in a way people would at least understand, but i apologise for any brain damage i have caused.
There are alot of rich people who don´t have a perfect grammar understanding.I bet most of them don´t.:tup:

[mello]

Lol who was BT making that statement about. Funny two guys responded.

Back on topic, I do like BT's assesment of what companies are doing- i.e. putting the drones out in the burbs and the execs in the highrise suites downtown. Very good observation BT. So this means that middle class bread and butter jobs are heading out to the burbs?

And what is up with Chevron being so tight fisted? Those guys are cheap, making tons on oil profits and moving everyone to the burbs.... buck dat!

[Neuman]

"And what is up with Chevron being so tight fisted? Those guys are cheap, making tons on oil profits and moving everyone to the burbs.... buck dat!"

Have to make sure all their employees have to drive to work instead of Mass trans. Helps keep the stock price up!;)

You see a lot of this in Chicago as well. United Airlines recently announced they are moving their executives downtown to a new headquarters building but leaving their operations in Elk Grove Village out by O'Hare.

[larryfla]

Glad to see Providence, RI made it onto the list representing small and mid size northeastern cities. Many northeastern cities have hit hard times and are struggling to reinvent themselves but Providence is slowly succeding in making a new name for itself. Years ago noone wanted anything to do with Providence - the largest city in Rhode Island just 30 minutes from Boston.

Today though there is a huge convention center with a recently expanded Westin hotel that now includes condos, the Dunkin Donuts Center arena, the Providence Place Mall (the most upscale mall in the state). Across the street from all of this GTECH recently built its new headquarters - relocating from the suburbs back downtown. Steps away is the state capital, hundreds of new condos and apartments, renovated hotels including the new Hotel Providence. College Hill is still home to Brown and RISD and downtown is home to Johnson & Wales. Downtown Providence is truly looking up and its nice to see it on this list in the top 20 passing cities such as New Haven, Hartford, Stamford, Albany, Springfield, Bridgeport, Buffalo and Syracuse.

Speaking of Buffalo, I recently read that there are so many people moving to Charlotte from Buffalo that Charlotte's new city motto is, "What part of Buffalo do you come from?" Pretty funny I thought:)

[larryfla]

Glad to see Providence, RI made it onto the list representing small and mid size northeastern cities. Many northeastern cities have hit hard times and are struggling to reinvent themselves but Providence is slowly succeding in making a new name for itself. Years ago noone wanted anything to do with Providence - the largest city in Rhode Island just 30 minutes from Boston.

Today though there is a huge convention center with a recently expanded Westin hotel that now includes condos, the Dunkin Donuts Center arena, the Providence Place Mall (the most upscale mall in the state). Across the street from all of this GTECH recently built its new headquarters - relocating from the suburbs back downtown. Steps away is the state capital, hundreds of new condos and apartments, renovated hotels including the new Hotel Providence. College Hill is still home to Brown and RISD and downtown is home to Johnson & Wales. Downtown Providence is truly looking up and its nice to see it on this list in the top 20 passing cities such as New Haven, Hartford, Stamford, Albany, Springfield, Bridgeport, Buffalo and Syracuse.

Speaking of Buffalo, I recently read that there are so many people moving to Charlotte from Buffalo that Charlotte's new city motto is, "What part of Buffalo do you come from?" Pretty funny I thought:)

[larryfla]

That survey is way too old to use with the vast changes over the past decade.