Millennials Most Likely to Live Alone in Richmond and Pittsburgh
Just in time for Independence Day, new Zillow analysis finds 15 percent of Richmond millennials live alone, the highest percentage of all major U.S. metros.
SEATTLE, June 29, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- More millennials live alone in Richmond, Va. than in any other major U.S. metro, according to a recent Zillow® analysisi. In Richmond, 15 percent of millennials live alone, followed by 14 percent in Pittsburgh and Buffalo, N.Y.
Across the U.S., almost 9 percent of millennials live alone, a number that's been declining since 2005, likely due to unaffordable rents and rising home prices. Consequently, millennials choose to live with their parents or find roommates.
The percentage of 23-34 year olds living with family increased 46 percent between 2000 and 2013, according to a recent Zillow analysis. Similarly, 21 percent of millennials across the U.S. are still living at home with their momsii, proving that living with friends or family may be one of the ways to afford housing in some of the nation's hottest markets.
There are, however, still places across the U.S. where millennials are living independently. Richmond's strong labor market - employment is up almost 4 percent over the past year - and relatively high incomes among millennials help. The median yearly income among millennials in Richmond is $49,500, which allows them to afford to live in over 15 percent of all rentals in the area.
In Oklahoma City, 13 percent of millennials live on their own, with a median income of $40,000 a year. At this salary, they are able to afford almost 22 percent of homes.
Places with the Greatest Percentage of Millennials Living Independently
| Ranking |
Metropolitan Area |
Percent of |
Median Income |
Share of |
YoY |
| 1 |
Richmond, Va. |
15.0% |
$ 49,500 |
15.2% |
3.6% |
| 2 |
Pittsburgh |
14.3% |
$ 40,000 |
17.2% |
0.2% |
| 3 |
Buffalo, N.Y. |
14.2% |
$ 40,000 |
13.5% |
0.6% |
| 4 |
Columbus, Ohio |
14.0% |
$ 38,800 |
11.6% |
2.1% |
| 5 |
Virginia Beach, Va. |
13.9% |
$ 50,000 |
17.6% |
1.0% |
| 6 |
Cleveland |
13.9% |
$ 35,000 |
6.2% |
0.9% |
| 7 |
New Orleans |
13.4% |
$ 40,000 |
15.8% |
0.6% |
| 8 |
Austin, Texas |
13.4% |
$ 40,000 |
1.5% |
4.6% |
| 9 |
Kansas City, Mo. |
13.4% |
$ 40,000 |
13.2% |
1.9% |
| 10 |
Oklahoma City |
13.3% |
$ 40,000 |
21.6% |
1.2% |
"With home prices and rents rising as fast as they are, it's a common assumption that young adults in many cases cannot afford to live alone," said Zillow Chief Economist Dr. Svenja Gudell. "Though that may be true in some markets, there's still a large number of amazing places across the U.S. that are prime for millennials to thrive independently. These are places where young adults can easily find jobs at a competitive salary, and where housing expenses won't eat up the majority of their income, enabling them to save more."
Home values across the nation are up 5 percent over the past year and rents are up almost 3 percent. Zillow forecasts rents to increase another 3 percent by this time next year, making it difficult for millennials to live on their own.
| Metropolitan Area |
Percent of |
Median Income |
Share of |
YoY |
| United States |
8.9% |
$ 35,000 |
10.9% |
2.0% |
| New York/Northern New Jersey |
9.7% |
$ 60,000 |
18.8% |
2.0% |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
8.1% |
$ 50,000 |
7.8% |
2.5% |
| Chicago, IL |
11.1% |
$ 46,000 |
6.1% |
1.7% |
| Dallas-Fort Worth, TX |
11.9% |
$ 43,000 |
5.8% |
3.8% |
| Philadelphia, PA |
11.4% |
$ 45,800 |
8.0% |
1.8% |
| Houston, TX |
10.6% |
$ 45,000 |
5.2% |
1.1% |
| Washington, DC |
11.1% |
$ 60,000 |
3.4% |
2.1% |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale, FL |
8.1% |
$ 40,000 |
15.5% |
3.0% |
| Atlanta, GA |
10.9% |
$ 44,000 |
14.0% |
3.1% |
| Boston, MA |
10.6% |
$ 57,000 |
8.0% |
1.8% |
| San Francisco, CA |
9.4% |
$ 66,000 |
15.7% |
3.7% |
| Detroit, MI |
9.4% |
$ 36,000 |
1.4% |
2.0% |
| Riverside, CA |
6.1% |
$ 72,000 |
72.4% |
4.0% |
| Phoenix, AZ |
12.3% |
$ 44,000 |
5.5% |
3.5% |
| Seattle, WA |
13.2% |
$ 50,000 |
4.7% |
3.1% |
| Minneapolis-St Paul, MN |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
| San Diego, CA |
10.4% |
$ 66,000 |
28.2% |
3.0% |
| St. Louis, MO |
12.0% |
$ 36,800 |
3.7% |
1.8% |
| Tampa, FL |
11.5% |
$ 35,000 |
7.3% |
3.3% |
| Baltimore, MD |
10.8% |
$ 55,000 |
8.8% |
1.6% |
| Denver, CO |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
| Pittsburgh, PA |
14.3% |
$ 40,000 |
17.2% |
0.2% |
| Portland, OR |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
| Charlotte, NC |
11.9% |
$ 40,000 |
7.2% |
3.3% |
| Sacramento, CA |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
n/a |
| San Antonio, TX |
10.7% |
$ 48,000 |
28.0% |
2.9% |
| Orlando, FL |
10.8% |
$ 35,000 |
5.4% |
4.4% |
| Cincinnati, OH |
12.2% |
$ 35,000 |
2.6% |
1.7% |
| Cleveland, OH |
13.9% |
$ 35,000 |
6.2% |
0.9% |
| Las Vegas, NV |
11.1% |
$ 36,300 |
3.3% |
3.1% |
| Columbus, OH |
14.0% |
$ 38,800 |
11.6% |
2.1% |
| Indianapolis, IN |
11.6% |
$ 40,000 |
19.5% |
2.3% |
| San Jose, CA |
6.5% |
$ 75,000 |
6.5% |
4.1% |
| Austin, TX |
13.4% |
$ 40,000 |
1.5% |
4.6% |
| Virginia Beach, VA |
13.9% |
$ 50,000 |
17.6% |
1.0% |
About Zillow
Zillow® is the leading real estate and rental marketplace dedicated to empowering consumers with data, inspiration and knowledge around the place they call home, and connecting them with the best local professionals who can help. In addition, Zillow operates an industry-leading economics and analytics bureau led by Zillow's Chief Economist Dr. Svenja Gudell. Dr. Gudell and her team of economists and data analysts produce extensive housing data and research covering more than 450 markets at Zillow Real Estate Research. Zillow also sponsors the quarterly Zillow Home Price Expectations Survey, which asks more than 100 leading economists, real estate experts and investment and market strategists to predict the path of the Zillow Home Value Index over the next five years. Zillow also sponsors the biannual Zillow Housing Confidence Index (ZHCI) which measures consumer confidence in local housing markets, both currently and over time. Launched in 2006, Zillow is owned and operated by Zillow Group (NASDAQ: Z and ZG), and headquartered in Seattle.
Zillow and Zestimate are registered trademarks of Zillow, Inc.
i Zillow analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data from the American Community Survey from 2014. Made available by the University of Minnesota, IPUMS-USA.
ii Research from a Zillow analysis on the percent of millennials living at home with their mom, found here.
iii Income data is from the American Community Survey, 2014.
iv Calculated using the median income of millennials living alone and 2015 Q4 Zillow data on rental affordability.
v Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment Statistics.
SOURCE Zillow
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