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2 out of 3 millennials who spent teen years in Raleigh are still here, data shows

Most young adults, nationally and locally, are staying close to home. In Raleigh, 66% of millennials who were here in their teens have stayed.

Posted Updated

By
Ali Ingersoll
, WRAL Investigative Data Journalist

Almost a decade ago, Kate Dudeck packed up her place in Philadelphia and moved more than 400 miles down I-95 for a job at Duke.

"It was sort of becoming a popular area when I moved here in 2013 but since then the job market, housing market are just booming," said Dudeck, a Raleigh resident who lives in the North Hills area.

According to Census data out this week, Dudeck is an outlier.
The report analyzed information regarding millennials and their likelihood to move away during young adulthood – which is the most common time for people to migrate away from home. Studies have shown and this data verifies, that’s changing.

Most young adults, nationally and locally, are staying close to home, the migration data and accompanying report shows. Nationwide: at age 26, 69% of individuals live within commuting distance of where they were when they were teens; 80% have travelled less than 100 miles and 90% less than 500 miles.

In Raleigh, the data is similar with 66% of millennials who were here in their teens have stayed.

It something that surprised Dudeck, who married a Raleigh native.

"My husband is from here and when I meet new people, I feel like that’s rare. I feel like he's in the minority," she said.

For the 34% of those from Raleigh who move away, some (14%) are staying in state, going to Greensboro, Charlotte and Fayetteville, mostly.

The average person who decided to leave Raleigh after spending their formative years here moved 178 miles away, though.

Top metro locations Raleigh natives moved to:

  • New York
  • Washington D.C.
  • Atlanta
  • Los Angeles
  • Boston
Meanwhile, the data shows that 49% of millennials calling Raleigh home now are from areas outside of here. Similar to those moving away, the in-state rates are lower than out-of-state, on average coming from 216 miles away.

Dudeck's hometown, Philadelphia, is among the top locations.

Top metros Raleigh transplants moved from:

  • New York
  • Washington D.C.
  • Newark, N.J.
  • Philadelphia
  • Atlanta

There are some differences in top destinations when it comes to race. For instance, Raleigh makes the top 10 for young adults who are Black but isn’t on the list for the overall population or any other race.

In general, young adults who are Black are less likely to move as far as people from other racial and ethnic backgrounds, the report found. Young adults who are Black move an average of 133 miles from home by age 26 while their white counterparts relocated 194 miles away, on average.

"This pattern occurs both because Black individuals are more likely to remain in their childhood commuting zone (CZ) and because, conditional on migrating, they move shorter distances," the report said.

The study also found that finances and pay in a region isn't as much of a motivating factor to relocate for young adults who are Black.

"For many individuals, particularly non-White individuals and those from low-income families, the 'radius of economic opportunity' is quite narrow," the report noted.

When an area like Raleigh sees wage increases, though, the people who benefit most are those who grew up nearby, rather than those who migrated to the area. And the study also found that wage increases had a small effect on migration to a region. People would have moved to an area anyways, regardless of the pay.

"That's what I hear a lot," said Dudeck. "People ask where can we get better weather, where can we get better cost of living, maybe more home for our money. I hear it all the time. I meet people who say they both work from home, they pulled out a map, visited Raleigh, loved it and that was that."

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