Whether young adults are moving into or out of a city is an important reflection of the vibrancy and health of that community. By and large, these young adults are establishing careers, creating new households, starting families, and potentially buying homes. They are an important part of a healthy community. One way of measuring how attractive a city is to young adults is by considering the number of 25-to-34-year-olds living there.
North Carolina and the nation have similar percentages of young adults. In recent years their percentage of the overall population has shrunk due to the aging of the baby boomers and increases in the average life spans of Americans. However, the number of young adults living in North Carolina's largest cities is on the rise, even if their share of the overall population is shrinking.
Durham and Raleigh were the only two cities that were consistently on the list of the ten highest percentages of young adults in each time period. Mint Hill and Shelby were consistently in the group of cities with the lowest percentages in each time period.
Data for 25-34 year olds was calculated from the following sources and tables for the referenced years: