Young engineers and recent college graduates see Miami, Houston and Philadelphia — not San Francisco, New York or Seattle — as the hot new places to jumpstart a technology or creative economy career.
Why it matters: For some tech CEOs, it’s the perfect time to capitalize on being where the new talent wants to go — and also pay lower taxes in the process, which makes Sun Belt cities in Florida and Texas attractive.
The big picture: Pandemic moves are redistributing coveted tech workers more evenly across the country after being so heavily concentrated in just a handful of cities for years.
- This is also expected to help spread wealth, job opportunities and startup creation in new places.
Details: According to LinkedIn data, more workers in the software and IT services sectors moved into Miami, Houston, Dallas, L.A. and Denver between March 2020 and February 2021 than in the previous year.
- Meanwhile, more left San Francisco, New York, Seattle, and Boston.
By the numbers: Nearly half of tech workers moved during the pandemic, according to an April survey released Friday by non-profit One America Works.
- Among those who lived in major city centers before 2020, one in five expect to live in a smaller city after the pandemic.
- Younger, non-management employees cited affordability, proximity to friends and family, having enough space and an enjoyable climate as top reasons for choosing home locations.