Are Millennials Leaving DC?

• September 26, 2019

by Nena Perry-Brown

Today, a Wall Street Journal article noted that the population of millennials has dropped over the past year in many large cities, including Washington, DC. A closer look at newly released American Community Survey results paints a slightly different picture, particularly over the long term.

Between 2017 and 2018, the number of 25-34 year olds in Washington, DC increased by 1,113, from 162,354 to 163,467. This age group accounts for the majority of the city's population. The number of people in this age group has steadily increased in DC since 2010, when the population segment stood at 126,322, although it should be noted that the oldest millennials were 29 that year.

On the other hand, the number of 20-24 year olds in DC went down by 1,316 between 2017 and 2018, from 54,294 to 52,978. The number of people in this age group has steadily fallen since 2010, when there were 60,843 DC residents in this age group.

Some of the population decrease among 20-24 year olds may be attributable to college enrollment in the city or elsewhere, and it should also be noted that last year, millennials ranged in age from 22 to 37. It will be interesting to see whether Generation Z shies away from settling in DC and whether they account for the population decrease among people in their early 20s.

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/are-millennials-leaving-dc/15941