Who Moves and What It Means for Growing Cities

It’s difficult to grow a city. Tax revenues limit budgets and there are trade-offs involved in how to spend those resources. Any city trying to allocate resources to grow needs to know who moves.

3 minute read

June 21, 2016, 6:00 AM PDT

By Casey Brazeal @northandclark


Austin Texas

Austin, Texas, one of the fastest growing cities in the country. | RoschetzkyProductions / Shutterstock

Young adults, between 16-35, move more than anyone else.

It's difficult to grow a city. Tax revenues limit budgets and there will always be trade-offs involved in how to spend those resources. Local governments need to decide how to spend those funds to run their cities to provide public services and make their cities attractive to people who are choosing where to live.  

In Triumph of the City, Edward Glaeser critiques Richard Florida's work on what it takes to create an appealing city. Florida's The Rise of the Creative Class highlights the benefits of producing a city that appeals to younger people by supporting a community of artistic, creative people. Glaeser argues, "There are roughly three times as many people in their thirties, forties and fifties as there are in their twenties, so it would be a mistake for cities to think that they can survive solely as magnets for the young and hip." He contends that this larger more influential population should command more funds and attention. He goes on to tell his readers that, while efforts to attract people in their 20s may be a good in-and-of-themselves, any dollars spent attracting this population are dollars that would be better spent on the concerns of the more numerous older adults.

That the 30-year span between 30 and 60 makes up a larger percentage of the population than that of people in their twenties is undeniable.   It’s a stretch to think you can appeal to the interests of 32-year-olds and, at the same time, meet the needs of the generation who gave birth to them.  But the place where this argument falls apart is in the age groups that cities should try to influence. America contains many people in their forties and fifties but those cohorts don’t move at anywhere near the rates of their younger countrymen.

According to the most recent Census, the population most likely to move and to desire to move is between the ages of 16 – 34. People are most likely to move to another county when they are between the ages of 20 and 24.

Marketers in any number of different industries know that a disproportionate amount of time and dollars is focused on 18- to 35-year-olds. This is not just out of some desire by brands to seem cool. It has to do with initial decisions and the habits they establish. Consumers that have already made up their minds about a brand, a product, a service, or a place are harder to influence than people who are participating in a market for the first time. It's much easier to get a customer to start with you than to switch to you after they've already created habits and preferences.

This is not to say that there's never a time to seek out 40 and 50 year old consumers. Many companies target older consumers because they can be underserved or ignored by their competitors.

In cities, however, a very different dynamic exists. Older people are not ignored they actually influence local government disproportionately as they are more likely to vote and be involved in with the local government. Cities make efforts to serve an older demographic because the governments themselves are made up of older (mostly male) people who are elected by disproportionately older people.

If a city wants to reach out to a group of possible new citizens who aren't getting the attention others are, a population that makes up a disproportionate segment of the winnable market, they should not seek to appeal to older residents who won’t move and are already getting the lion’s share of the attention. They should target the people who are likely to move.


Casey Brazeal

Casey Brazeal is a Chicago-based writer and planner. His background includes time as a research assistant at the Urban Transportation Center and as a reporter with a weekly column for Extra Newspaper in Chicago. He’s also published news stories and interviews for New City Newspaper, Vócalo Radio and Site Sketch 101. Casey received a Masters in Urban Planning and Policy from the University of Illinois in Chicago. While at UIC Casey received a certificate in Public Transit Planning and Management.

View form second story inside Southdale Mall in Edina, Minnesota with escalators and model cars parked on downstairs floor.

The Mall Is Dead — Long Live the Mall

The American shopping mall may be closer to its original vision than ever.

March 21, 2024 - Governing

View of Austin, Texas skyline with river in foreground during morning golden hour.

The Paradox of American Housing

How the tension between housing as an asset and as an essential good keeps the supply inadequate and costs high.

March 26, 2024 - The Atlantic

Houston, Texas skyline.

Report: Las Vegas, Houston Top List of Least Affordable Cities

The report assesses the availability of affordable rental units for low-income households.

March 22, 2024 - Urban Edge

Aerial view of Anchorage, Alaska downtown with mountains in background at golden hour.

Anchorage Leaders Debate Zoning Reform Plan

Last year, the city produced the fewest new housing units in a decade.

March 28 - Anchorage Daily News

Young man in wheelchair crossing zebra crosswalk.

How to Protect Pedestrians With Disabilities

Public agencies don’t track traffic deaths and injuries involving disabled people, leaving a gap in data to guide safety interventions.

March 28 - Governing

Aerial view of mountain town of Steamboat Springs, Colorado in the winter with snow at dusk.

Colorado Town Fills Workforce Housing Need With ‘Dorm-Style’ Housing

Median rent in Steamboat Springs is $4,000 per month.

March 28 - CBS News

News from HUD User

HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research

Call for Speakers

Mpact Transit + Community

New Updates on PD&R Edge

HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research

Write for Planetizen

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.