by Andrew Powell
Data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows that while the exodus from large cities is slowing down, several Florida cities are still among the nation’s fastest-growing municipalities.
The Census Bureau’s latest report shows Florida had three out of the top 15 fastest-growing cities, both in terms of percentage and raw numbers.
The Vintage 2022 population estimates for cities and towns show that nine of the fastest-growing cities in the U.S. are located in the Sunbelt, with small towns in the South increasing in population by 0.4%. Texas ranked above Florida, with six of those nine cities in the Lone Star State. Texas municipalities have taken the top spots consistently since 2018. Arizona municipalities also scored in the top five every year.
New York City’s population took a massive dip when the pandemic hit, losing 305,465 people in only a year. The out-migration the next year was 60% less with only 123,104 leaving the Big Apple, according to the data.
California also saw residents migrating to other cities and states, with 131,466 leaving four cities, including Los Angeles and San Francisco.
Florida bucked this trend and between July 1, 2020 and July 1, 2021, the city of Port St. Lucie ranked fourth for largest numeric gains, followed by Cape Coral at sixth and Fort Myers at 13th. Jacksonville’s population had already begun to increase before the pandemic and was ranked 11th for the top cities in 2018-2019.
The period between July 2021 and July 2022, had Jacksonville sixth for largest net gains, increasing its population by 15,000. Seventh is Port St. Lucie with Cape Coral ranks one spot below in eighth place.
Port St. Lucie, Cape Coral, and North Port City all saw a population increase of at least 6.4% in 2022.
The only Florida city that lost residents according to the Census data was Kissimmee in 2018-2019. The central Florida city has since fallen off that list and has become one of the hotspots for businesses and families to relocate to thanks to its proximity to Orlando.
The counties of Polk, Lee and Hillsborough — three of Florida’s fastest-growing counties that had a collective net gain of 92,848 new residents in 2022 — have added around 25,000 new housing units respectively between 2020 and 2022.
Recent IRS data shows that the Sunshine State is one of the most desireable locations in the U.S. Almost 800,000 tax filers have relocated in recent years and between 2020 and 2021, Florida had a net gain of 257,487 people.
In order to attract and retain residents in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the Live Local Act into law in March, the largest investment for housing in the state’s history. The bill created a statewide workforce housing strategy to increase affordable housing options for Florida workers and also expanded the availability of down payment assistance.
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Andrew Powell is a contributor to The Center Square.
Photo “Orlando, Florida” by Miosotis Jade. CC BY-SA 4.0.
