Raleigh one of America's Next Boom Towns

Forbes compiled a list of cities that have the chance to prosper in the coming decade. Raleigh came in fifth on the list out of the 53 largest metropolitan statistical areas that were evaluated. To determine the next boom towns Forbes evaluated the statistical areas by a number of metrics that were equally weighted. They were as follows:

• The percentage of children in the population aged 5 to 14
• The birth rate from 2010-14
• Net domestic migration from 2010-14
• The percentage of the population aged 25-44 with a bachelor’s degree
• Income growth from 2010-15
• The unemployment rate
• Population growth from 2010-14.

According to Forbes the results showed that there were two types of cities on the rise. One was driven by the tech industry, that had an influx of highly educated people and sharply rising incomes; and the other type being what they referred to as “opportunity cities,” which have more of a diverse range of industries, lower cost of living and more families. Both types of cities will emerge as leaders in different ways and for different reasons.

Forbes states, “rather than being fundamentally incompatible, this enormous country should have room for both models. America needs its elite centers, but there also have to be cities for middle-class families. Each can claim a piece of the future.”

Austin, Salt Lake City and San Jose were the top three cities on the list. You can read the full story here.