Philadelphia ranked best city for millennials to work and live, but they prefer NYC
Philadelphia may be the most economically viable metropolis for millennials looking for a place to live, work and play at an affordable rate.
Forbes posted a recent survey naming Philadelphia as the best city for millennials because of its below average unemployment rate, which is 20 basis points lower than the national average, as well as its supply of affordable housing.
Based on feedback from 2,000 people born between 1982 and 1998, the survey found that millennials flock to cities that maintain a thriving job market, affordable rent and affordable home prices. The data was obtained by Abodo, an apartment search website run by millennials.
But despite Philadelphia’s market viability for generational youth, less than 1 percent of the respondents deemed it as their ideal city; New York remains a more popular metropolitan hub for millennials.
According to Center City District President and CEO Paul R. Levy, this finding may be true for career-driven millennials.
“Philadelphia has done exceedingly well in attracting millennials,” Levy said. “Forty percent of Greater Center City’s population is millennial. If New York is ranking higher, it has less to do with the amenity package and more to do with the fact that New York City simply has more jobs. Despite what people may say in surveys, jobs are the No.1 determinant for residential location decisions.”
But Center City is just one section of Philadelphia that offers top quality amenity packages for millennials.
Jason Weiss, 30, an attorney at Wapner Newman in Philadelphia, has been a local resident for the past six years. He has seen this economic viability pour into surrounding neighborhoods.
“There has been a major expansion of high-rise office buildings and higher-end residential areas beyond Center City in areas like Fishtown and the Naval Yard,” Weiss said. “With that, rent has substantially increased but salaries have as well. That type of development is attracting more and more young people to the city and not just the areas around it.”
Local businesses like Publicis Health Media are helping drive this influx of youth into the city. PHM President Matt McNally said that about 80 percent of the company staff are under 30 years old.
“From what we have seen, this is just a generational trend in the city,” McNally said. “PHM operates in three major cities — Philadelphia, New York and Chicago. In the last few months, we have seen high-caliber New York-based talent want to relocate to Philadelphia for a better cost of living and quality of life.”
Renae Walker ~ Realtor 