Top 20 U.S. Cities For Renter Migration Include Alexandria

ALEXANDRIA, VA — Alexandria can stand among top U.S. cities as desirable places for renters, according to a new study from StorageCafe, a storage space search website. In the ranking of top U.S. cities for renter migration, Alexandria ranked 16th.

The study analyzed 3.4 million rental applications in 257 markets with populations over 100,000. StorageCafe researchers used rental applications to find top rental destinations and give cities a ranking based on inbound vs. outbound renters. The study also examined what median income and average home size square footage are like in places renters move to.

Alexandria made the top 20, following neighboring Arlington at 4th and Washington, DC at 10th. The city has 1.7 inbound renters for every outbound renter, according to the analysis. The most common origin city for renters in Alexandria is Arlington.

The study identified both Arlington and Alexandria as a place drawing millennial renters from Washington, DC. Over half of inbound renters to Alexandria are millennials, contributing to the age demographic of renters becoming younger in the city, StorageCafe says. Alexandria's average apartment square footage of 856 is more than DC's 741, but both have similar estimated median income in the $78,000s.

DC is seeing overall more inbound renters than outbound, but it's not because of millennials. In fact, the analysis shows more millennials moving out than in. Generation Z renters, however, are moving in larger numbers than moving out.

Based on the rankings, StorageCafe found while large cities continue to draw renters, so do smaller cities nearby. StorageCafe attributed that to pandemic trends of residents moving to smaller cities near large cities as work from home became the norm. Places like Arlington and Alexandria fit that criteria due to their proximity near DC.

"As people worked from home, with a commute no longer necessary in many cases, they became accustomed to living in quieter surroundings in 2021, and this looks like continuing," the study stated. "The migration of renters to feeder towns located near the nation’s large cities reflects this."

See the full ranking and analysis on renter migration from StorageCafe.