North Texas housing draws out-of-state interest

Most pre-pandemic moves were motivated by job changes, but now housing affordability is driving cross-state relocations, experts say.

The big picture: Since 2021, there has been an exodus from high-cost tech hubs along the West Coast — including the Bay Area and Seattle — for more affordable mountain region states and Texas, Redfin deputy chief economist Taylor Marr says.

• The Texas population is booming, and Fort Worth added the most residents in the yearlong period that ended in July 2022.

By the numbers: Nearly 75% of page views for Zillow listings in Dallas-Fort Worth are from locals, according to first-quarter Zillow data shared with Axios.

• Houston residents tied with Los Angeles residents for searches in D-FW.
• Angelenos led in out-of-state searches for D-FW listings, followed by New Yorkers and Chicagoans.

Yes, but: Fewer people are looking to relocate right now due to high housing costs. Across the U.S., the number of Redfin users searching for homes within their metro is down 18% from a year ago, per a June report.

• Meanwhile, the number of users surfing listings in a new area dropped 7%.

• Compared with last year, a lower percentage of Zillow searches for D-FW listings came from other cities. About 2% of all searches during the first quarter of 2022 were from Los Angeles, dropping to 1.6% this year.

Between the lines: If people are moving right now, it's in search of cheaper housing elsewhere.

What's next: Growing environmental concerns will start to influence migration patterns, though affordability will likely still be the No.1 driver, Marr predicts.