Leaving Texas isn't so simple for LGBTQ residents
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LGBTQ Americans aren't just fleeing red states like Texas for blue enclaves. They are also building lives in cheaper, fast-growing metros where jobs, housing and politics collide.
Why it matters: The "red-state exodus" narrative misses a quieter reality.
- Affordability and work are keeping some LGBTQ+ people in — and drawing others to — places that may be politically complicated but economically viable.
The big picture: LGBTQ Americans have lower homeownership rates than non-LGBTQ Americans, according to the Williams Institute.
- And, LGBTQ-friendly cities with stronger LGBTQ protections — such as San Francisco and Boston — often come with significantly higher housing costs, creating a tension between safety and affordability.
By the numbers: Homebuyers needed to earn $150,364 annually to afford the median-priced home in states with LGBTQ housing protections as of 2024, per an Axios analysis of real estate company Redfin data.
- That's 46.8% more income needed than in states, like Texas, without such protections.
Zoom in: Around 4% of adults in North Texas identify as LGBTQ, according to Williams Institute data.
- Same-sex married households in North Texas almost doubled from 2019-24, increasing from around 11,000 couples to roughly 21,600, per a Dallas Morning News analysis of Census Bureau data.
Between the lines: 9% of the region's homes for sale were affordable for someone earning the local median household income, according to Redfin.
- By contrast, less than 2% of homes for sale were considered affordable in San Diego and Los Angeles, which have larger percentages of adults who identify as LGBTQ.
Caveat: Researchers caution that LGBTQ migration data remains limited because federal surveys have historically failed to consistently collect sexual orientation and gender identity data.
What they're doing: Oak Lawn United Methodist Church painted its steps in rainbow colors after Gov. Greg Abbott ordered the removal of rainbow crosswalks statewide last year.
- "This is our way of speaking to our community of sharing a message of boldness and courage that who you are is beloved and worthy of dignity and belonging," Rev. Rachel Griffin-Allison, the church's senior pastor, told NBC5 in January.
The bottom line: The tension between affordability, opportunity and rights is quietly reshaping the map of LGBTQ America.