These 5 Florida ‘boomtowns’ are growing faster than nearly anywhere else

A LendingTree study published this week has revealed the fastest-growing metros in the U.S. — and it turns out that five of them are in Florida.

The study looked at population growth in recent years (2021-2023), as well as changes in unemployment numbers and GDP to figure out which of these metros placed at the top of the list.

The data revealed that eight of the 10 fastest-growing metros are actually located in the South. And in fact, the No. 2 spot went to the City Beautiful itself: Orlando.

Overall, the top 10 fastest-growing metros were as follows:

1. Austin, Texas
2. Orlando, Florida
3. North Port, Florida
4. Nashville, Tennessee
5. Cape Coral, Florida
6. Colorado Springs, Colorado
7. Charleston, South Carolina
8. Lakeland, Florida
9. Deltona, Florida
10. Denver, Colorado

According to researchers, Austin was the biggest boomtown yet again after taking the same spot last year. But the fact remains that Florida took more top spots than any other state.

“Why the surge of success in the Sunshine State? The year-round warm weather, of course, comes to mind, but it’s also a hot spot due to lower taxes (no state-level personal income tax) and more relaxed regulations. Florida is home to many well-respected colleges and universities that provide a pipeline for talent to businesses in the state, and the state actively invests in incentives to attract lucrative industries such as e-commerce, aerospace and biotechnology.”

LendingTree, "America's Biggest Boomtowns: 8 of 10 Fastest-Growing Metros in South, Including 5 in Florida"

But on the opposite end of the spectrum, New Orleans managed to come out as the lowest-ranked metro on the list.

In fact, the 10 slowest-growing boomtowns were determined to the be the following locales:

1. New Orleans, Louisiana
2. Cleveland, Ohio
3. Worcester, Massachusetts
4. Toledo, Ohio
5. Kiryas Joel, New York
6. Memphis, Tennessee
7. Chicago, Illinois
8. Rochester, New York
9. San Jose, California
10. Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Even other large cities like New York City and Los Angeles managed to fall near the bottom of the ranking, though the study claims that this is largely due to their higher expenses.

“Whether you’re talking about rent, salaries, taxes or other economic factors, the higher costs of doing business in an area, the greater the challenge for the small businessperson,” said LendingTree analyst Matt Schulz. “Of course, there are other reasons, as well, but it’s difficult to overstate the importance of cost. Starting a business is hard wherever you do it. Doing so in a high-cost area just makes it even tougher.”

Regardless, the rest of the Florida metro rankings included in the study are as follows: