Realtor.com report: Salt Lake best among top 50 cities for millennials

Salt Lake City is the top city in the U.S. for millennials, according to a report released last week by online real estate website Realtor.com.

The organization analyzed the 60 largest U.S. markets and compared the share of millennial page views in each area to the national average.

Salt Lake City’s population is 15.8 percent millennial (people ages 25-34), tops among those 60 markets and ahead of the national average of 13 percent. Salt Lake City also had the lowest unemployment rate, at 2.9 percent, and was third for most affordable home prices relative to salary. Buffalo topped that list, at 22.7 percent. Salt Lake City homeowners spend 30 percent of their income on their home, the report said.

Among Salt Lake City’s “draws” for millennials is “the excitement of an urban city with the relaxed vibes of a mountain town,” It said. “Large tech companies such as Adobe are attracting the millennial generation to this area by offering innovative workspaces, large salaries and an overall high quality of life.”

The report highlighted Sugar House as a millennial hotspot, noting that the area “offers hip bars and trendy restaurants.”

Following Salt Lake City in the overall rankings were Miami, Orlando, Seattle, Houston, Los Angeles, Buffalo, Albany, San Francisco and San Jose.

“High job growth in markets such as Orlando, Seattle and Miami, and the power of affordability in places like Albany and Buffalo, are making these markets magnets for millennials,” said Javier Vivas, manager of economic research for Realtor.com. “But what really stands out is that all these markets already have large numbers of millennials, which translates into strong populations of millennial home buyers.”