Colorado's Popularity Booming With Gen Z and Millennial Transplants

Colorado's population has steadily risen in recent years — so much so that the state added a new 8th Congressional District. Now a new report suggests that this trend is far from over, in part because of Colorado's growing popularity with members of Generation Z and, especially, Millennials.

In an interview with Westword, Eliza Theiss, author of the generational study from national real estate website Property Shark, offers plenty of reasons, including the pandemic, for why so many young, would-be homebuyers considering a move list Colorado among their dream destinations. "The explosion of work-from-home and hybrid work policies has had an effect, allowing some who wished to relocate to the state to do so, while higher-income buyers reoriented to invest into more remote vacation and second homes," she says.

The study is based on surveys completed by 2,399 homeowners, renters and individuals living with their parents or other family members across the U.S. Respondents were between the ages of eighteen and 56, with Theiss grouping the results in three categories: Generation X (individuals born between 1965 and 1980), Millennials (individuals born between 1981 and 1994) and Generation Z, or Zoomers (individuals born between 1995 and 2010).

The last time Theiss oversaw a generational study for Property Shark, back in 2018, the findings showed that more than half of the survey takers looking to move out of their current homes planned to stay within the state where they were living at the time — a finding duplicated this time around. Those looking farther afield, however, tended to lean toward the most populous states, led by Florida, California and Texas. In that 2018 survey, Colorado finished in the top fifteen — higher than expected based on its population, but no real threat to the biggest states.

That's changed. In 2021, when the study was conducted, Colorado was the 21st-largest state in terms of population, according to Property Shark's figures. But while Florida, California and Texas once again dominated the top three, Colorado jumped to number four, mainly because of its appeal to younger house hunters. Colorado was the ninth-most-popular state for Gen X types, but fifth for Zoomers and third for Millennials.

Theiss says that Colorado owes much of its climb up the popularity ladder to "Millennial buyers and their growing numbers in the market." But she thinks that its beauty has cross-generational allure. "Colorado's abundant nature and opportunities for pandemic-safe outdoor activities also presented a more attractive prospective than densely packed cities," she notes.

The survey questions didn't attempt to determine why one generation liked a certain state more than another — but Theiss has some ideas about why younger homebuyers are drawn to Colorado: "From an anecdotal perspective, Colorado's image as an 'in,' attractive place to live, with opportunities for young professionals in terms of employment, entertainment and lifestyle, has grown fairly recently, capturing younger generations more."

She adds: "It will be interesting to watch if this increase in popularity will be followed through by Gen Z and Millennials and at what rates, and how that might impact the state — particularly its larger cities and surrounding areas."

And especially after these would-be Coloradans get a look at the price of homes in this state.

The price of the average home in greater Denver actually went up in December, a time of year when declines had previously been commonplace, exceeding $700,000, and while January figures dipped a bit lower, experts are predicting "extreme bidding wars" in the months ahead. Among the main reasons cited by the Denver Metro Association of Realtors: high demand.