Austin, TX
Texas Population Set To Soar as Residents Flock to the Lone Star State From These Surprising Places
Texas continues to draw large numbers of new residents, and they aren’t coming just from California.
Newly released one-way trip data from U-Haul shows that, in the first half of 2024, the largest Texas cities drew new residents from throughout the region.
In Houston, for example, Louisiana was the top origin state for U-Haul movers, with New Orleans also ranking as the No. 1 out-of-state origin metro for the period.
In the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area, Oklahoma, Florida, and Louisiana were the top three origin states for movers. Oklahoma City was the top out-of-state origin metro, followed by Denver.
In both San Antonio and Austin, the most common origin state was California, a testament that the “Texafornia” trend continues, with thousands of Californians relocating to the Lone Star State.
But in San Antonio, Phoenix was the top out-of-state origin metro. Los Angeles took the top spot in Austin, which remains a popular moving destination for Californians.
There are limitations to the U-Haul list, which shows only rankings, not raw numbers of movers. As well, the rankings don’t include all movers—just those who rented a U-Haul. Still, the list shows how Texas continues to draw new residents from a variety of cities.
Movers are fueling Texas population growth
Texas, which is the second-largest U.S. state with a population of about 30 million, has been growing rapidly for decades.
From 2000 to 2020, the state’s population increased by 40%, or about 8.3 million, the largest absolute population increase of any state over that period, according to census data. Only Nevada, Utah, and Idaho grew faster on a percentage basis during the same period.
Over those two decades, about half of Texas’ population gain resulted from natural increase, or births outpacing deaths. Roughly a third came from net domestic migration, or more people moving in from another state than out. The remainder was from net international migration.
Starting in 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic appears to have turbocharged domestic migration to Texas, which has outpaced natural increase as the state’s top driver of population growth, according to the Texas Demographic Center.
Census data shows that from July 2020 to July 2023, nine of the 10 fastest-growing cities in the country were in Texas. The Texas cities in the top 10 were all suburban communities on the outskirts of major metro areas, their growth fueled by outward sprawl.
Typical was Celina, on the far northern edge of the Dallas metro area. From 2020 to 2023, Celina’s population increased by 143%, to 43,317, up from 17,808 three years prior.
Why are people moving to Texas?
Economic growth, lower tax burdens, and a lower cost of living in Texas are typically cited as the main factors driving the state’s population growth.
Relative home prices often provide some clues about why people are moving, and from where.
In San Antonio, for instance, the median July list price of $350,000, or $185 per square foot, is far below the $528,000, or $275 per square foot, seen in Phoenix, the top out-of-state origin city for San Antonio in the first half of this year.
Meanwhile, Houston’s median list price of $375,000 is somewhat higher than the $329,000 seen in top origin city New Orleans.
But Houston’s price per square foot of $177 comes in below the $179 in New Orleans, suggesting that a mover could sell in the Big Easy and get more house for their buck in Houston.
That trend doesn’t always hold—Oklahoma City, the top U-Haul origin city for Dallas-Fort Worth, has significantly lower home prices than its Texas counterpart.
However, it does help explain the enduring popularity of Austin, the most expensive major city in Texas, as a destination for people fleeing California.
Austin’s median July list price of $540,000 is eye-watering compared with prices in the other major metros of Texas.
But for someone moving from Los Angeles, Austin home prices would seem a bargain compared with that city’s $1.2 million median list price.
Austin, TX
No. 5 Texas baseball falls to Texas State as the Bobcats win their fourth straight in Austin, 5-3
A week into his tenure in Austin, Texas basketball coach Sean Miller has begun to rebuild the Longhorns’ roster.
Miller received a portal pledge Tuesday from Dailyn Swain, according to multiple reports. One of Miller’s former players at Xavier, the 6-foot-8, 220-pound wing who projects as a future NBA player has two remaining years of eligibility.
Swain had a breakout season for Xavier in 2024-25 while averaging 11 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.6 assists. The former four-star recruit and one of the top prep players in the state of Ohio for the 2023 class visited Austin on Monday. The No. 20 player in On3’s portal rankings also reportedly had visits scheduled for Ohio State, Kentucky and Arkansas.
Swain projects as an instant starter on the wing for Texas next season, considering his versatility and experience. He shoots just 25% from three-point range but is an effective scorer with his midrange game and at the rim. In Xavier’s loss to Illinois in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, however, he showed his offensive potential by making three of his five three-point shots while scoring a career-best 27 points. He also had eight rebounds, three assists and three steals against Illinois.
Swain can also handle the ball and has shown the ability to guard multiple positions during his two years at Xavier.
The spring portal window opened March 24, the same day that Texas officials announced Miller as the replacement for the fired Rodney Terry. Miller and his staff have their hands full rebuilding the roster, considering five Texas players used up their collegiate eligibility: forwards Arthur Kaluma, Jayson Kent, Ze’Rik Onyema and Kadin Shedrick as well as guard Julian Larry. Wing Devon Pryor has entered the portal, and Tre Johnson, the SEC’s freshman of the year, is expected to declare for the NBA draft any day.
MORE: Sean Miller was the right hire for Texas’ future. Here’s why. | Golden
That likely leaves Miller with three players — junior guard Jordan Pope, junior guard Chendall Weaver and graduate guard Tramon Mark — as the only eligible returning players who averaged at least 10 minutes a game from a team that went 19-16 and lost to Miller’s Xavier squad in a First Four game.
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As Texas’ industry and economy grow, so too do its infrastructure needs. This week, industry leaders are convening to discuss the state’s pressing transportation, energy, water, and digital infrastructure issues.
Infraday Texas is returning to Austin on Wednesday, where industry leaders, lawmakers and engineers will address how Texas’ unprecedented growth is impacting the state’s infrastructure systems and explore sustainable solutions to these challenges.
Texas recently received a “C” grade on its 2025 infrastructure report card from the nation’s premier society of civil engineers. The report rated Texas’ overall infrastructure as better than the national average but urged lawmakers to increase investment in water, wastewater and transit systems.
The increasing need for investment in infrastructure across the state comes as Texas experiences exponential population growth and rising resource demands, particularly for water and energy.
According to the 2022 State Water Plan, Texas’ population is expected to increase by more than 22 million people by 2070, raising water demand by 9%. However, water supply is projected to drop by 18% over the same period. Texas lawmakers are addressing the state’s looming water crisis this session, with bills aiming to invest billions of dollars into upgrading and repairing aging infrastructure or developing entirely new water projects.
Along with increased population, businesses — particularly technology and artificial intelligence companies — have turned to Texas to build large data centers that require massive amounts of energy and water to operate.
This, coupled with necessary transportation needs and digital protection, has created an urgent need for investment in the state’s infrastructure industry.
“Texas is at a pivotal moment where bold investments, smart planning and technological innovation must come together to modernize our infrastructure,” Infraday CEO Ken Bauco said.
Infraday will feature over 75 speakers to discuss leveraging AI to solve infrastructure problems, climate resilient policies and planning, water conservation and grid reliability from Texas municipal leaders, state lawmakers and industry experts including from CapMetro, Texas Department of Transportation, Austin Energy and Accenture.
“We provide a platform for public sector agencies to talk about new technologies, new capital programs, new initiatives and what’s coming down the pipeline in terms of growth and new projects that their cities are involved with,” Bauco told the American-Statesman.
Infraday Texas is all day Wednesday at the AT&T Hotel and Conference Center in Austin. Those who are interested can register for the event online.
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