Recession Slows Growth of “Boomburbs”

Some of America’s fastest growing suburbs are now seeing slower growth due to the recession. Of the 53 cities with populations of 100,000 and up that grew at least 10% every decade since 1970, 24 have lost population over the last two years, according to USA Today.

Of these “boomburgs” — suburbs that grew into major cities —15 are expected to see population gains of less than 10% by the end of this decade.

“They will drop out of boomburb status. “Some boomburbs have gone bust; some are still thriving,” Robert Lang, professor of sociology at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, told USA Today.  

Some of the suburban cities that are being affected are Coral Springs, Fla., Bellevue, Wash. and Peoria, Ariz.

Although growth may be slowing in some of these suburban cities, that doesn’t mean growth can’t and won’t pick up again. Some suburbs have transformed from mainly residential communities to cities with thriving business districts. So these areas will continue to attract people willing to move there for work.

Also, some people who are shopping for a home will find themselves having their pick up housing bargains wherever they choose to live. Although some Americans are attempting to downsize and move away from buying McMansions, there will always be people who want to move to the suburbs to get more house for their money than in a nearby city with an expensive housing market.