With today’s young adults choosing city life at a much-higher rate than in previous generations, which neighborhoods in the country are attracting the highest concentrations of millennials?
A new study looked at which ZIP codes have become millennial strongholds and found that New York, Chicago and Los Angeles were among those that were attracting the most.
The analysis, by RENTCafe.com, found that Los Angeles has the top-two neighborhoods in the country in terms of increasing numbers of millennials. The 90014 and 90013 ZIP codes topped the list of more than 3,000 ZIP codes in the 250 largest cities.
Downtown Los Angeles’ 90014 is both the most gentrified ZIP code in the nation, as well as the “next millennial hotspot,” the study found. It saw a 91 percent increase in its share of millennials – the highest growth rate in the country. The Downtown ZIP that includes the blighted Skid Row — 90013 — ranked second, with a 60 percent increase.
On the East Coast, the Lower Manhattan ZIP code 10282 has the third-highest influx of millennials, up 54.5 percent. The ZIP code covers Battery Park City, which is adjacent to TriBeCa.
While increasing numbers of millennials seem to be pouring into L.A. and New York, the age group’s domination is strongest felt in the West Loop in Chicago. The cohort makes up 73 percent of the residents of the 60661 ZIP code, for the largest share of any area in the country. The former manufacturing and warehouse area has only recently been transforming into a more residential district that is booming with new apartment developments.
Lower Manhattan’s 10005 — the Financial District — tied for second place with Manayunk, Pa., for the largest shares of Millennials, at 71 percent of the population.
Based solely on numbers of residents, both Chicago and New York are brimming with Millennials. New York has nine of the top 20 ZIP codes for millennials overall — all of them in Brooklyn and Queens — followed by Chicago with seven.
The ZIP code 11211 in Williamsburg is home to almost 44,000 millennials, the largest of any other zip code in the U.S. Chicago’s 60657, largely covering Lakeview, ranked second, with 41,500 millennials. Famous for its landmark Wrigley Field, Lakeview’s attractiveness comes from the relatively short commute to Chicago’s Loop, combined with a lively, young vibe.
For its study, RENTCafe.com analyzed data from the U.S. Census Bureau for 2011-2016 with more than 3,000 ZIP codes in the 250 largest cities in the country. The survey ranked the highest increase of millennials; the largest share of millennials; and the largest millennial populations. RENTCafe defined a “millennial” as someone born between 1977-1996.