The Unexpected U.S. Cities Drawing Wealth, Workers and Luxury Buyers

Multi-billion-dollar investments in technology infrastructure, semiconductor manufacturing, and data facilities are reshaping domestic migration and luxury real estate investment across the United States. Traditional financial and luxury hubs in Florida, California, and New York still hold vast concentrations of wealth, but high-net-worth buyers and real estate investors are directing more capital toward secondary markets built around industrial megaprojects.

Ryan Serhant, founder and chief executive officer of the New York-based real estate firm SERHANT. and star of Netflix’s *Owning Manhattan*, told Fox Business that Central Ohio, Huntsville, Alabama, and Charlotte, North Carolina, are positioned to lead the nation in net domestic migration over the coming years. He identified data center networks and advanced manufacturing hubs as primary engines of localized job growth and private wealth.

Younger buyers are also influencing the shift toward Midwestern markets as housing costs rise on the coasts. Real estate research firm StorageCafe reported that Gen Z and millennial buyers accounted for nearly 30% of all interstate movers in recent housing cycles, while residential properties in Ohio averaged roughly 30% less than coastal alternatives.

Danielle Andrews, a real estate agent with Realty One Group Next Generation, said lower baseline living costs in the Midwest allow younger buyers to build equity earlier in their careers. Groceries, energy, and health care align more closely with local income levels, allowing buyers to direct more capital toward long-term asset building.

In New Albany, northeast of Columbus in Licking County, Intel Corporation is constructing a semiconductor manufacturing complex whose investment commitment has expanded to $28 billion. Backed in part by federal incentives under the 2022 CHIPS and Science Act, the project is the largest single private sector investment in Ohio’s history.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has separately committed to investing more than $23 billion in Central Ohio through 2030 to expand its data center campuses. The expansion will provide cloud computing and artificial intelligence infrastructure, while investors track the resulting changes in residential property demand.

Serhant said high-end asset accumulation in non-coastal states frequently goes unnoticed. “You go to Ohio and you look around, and there are more very expensive cars than you’ll see in South Beach, but no one talks about it,” he said.

Huntsville, historically anchored by federal aerospace and defense operations at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center and the U.S. Army’s Redstone Arsenal, recently surpassed Birmingham to become Alabama’s most populous city, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates. It has the highest concentration of engineers per capita in the nation.

The Alabama city is continuing to expand its technological base through additions to Cummings Research Park and a multi-billion-dollar Federal Bureau of Investigation technology campus. Charlotte, meanwhile, is the second-largest commercial banking center in the United States behind New York City, with Bank of America and Truist Financial headquartered there and Wells Fargo maintaining major regional operational hubs.

The Charlotte metro area continues to absorb strong net inbound migration from financial services, corporate relocations, and expanding tech and data center corridors along the Interstate 85 regional transit spine.

Serhant characterized the migration patterns as a broader portfolio diversification strategy rather than a decline of primary metropolitan centers. Ultra-high-net-worth clients continue to purchase residential properties in established luxury markets while acquiring secondary and tertiary residences near emerging economic hubs, gaining geographical flexibility without paying primary urban price premiums.

“You would think that the American city is over, the metropolis is dead, and people are scattering,” Serhant said. “And what you actually see is wealth multiplying to the benefit of both the individuals and the real estate assets.”

The multi-market expansion is occurring alongside continued capital concentration in low-tax jurisdictions like Florida. Data compiled by *Fortune* shows that 19 of Florida’s 20 wealthiest residents now live in the Miami metropolitan area, supported by a state constitutional prohibition on personal income tax.

Hedge fund Citadel’s relocation of its global headquarters from Chicago to Miami’s Brickell financial district has reinforced South Florida’s position as a primary wealth capital. Florida, California, and New York nevertheless retain vast concentrations of wealth, even as investors examine markets tied to data centers and advanced manufacturing.

New York City experienced a net loss of approximately 12,000 residents last year, Serhant said, describing the decline as a warning sign regarding long-term municipal competitiveness. New York State has consistently led the nation in net domestic out-migration in post-2020 U.S. Census Bureau estimates, driven by high living expenses and tax rates.

In New York City, combined state and local marginal personal income taxes exceed 14.7% for top earners, making it one of the highest tax jurisdictions in the country. Housing affordability remains among the most constrained in the nation, and market metrics place New York among a small group of U.S. cities where even a hypothetical 0% mortgage interest rate would not lower median housing costs into an affordable range relative to local incomes.

High real estate costs affect both purchase and rental markets. Serhant cited a four-bedroom residential unit near his brokerage’s SoHo headquarters that recently rented for $75,000 per month as evidence of high overhead.

Serhant warned that excessive costs or tax burdens risk driving mobile capital into alternative jurisdictions, comparing state tax policies with corporate employers competing for talent. “If you have restrictions on employees on one company, really smart people at that company might say, ‘You know what? Maybe I’ll look for other jobs,’” Serhant said. “Those companies are states. American citizens are employees.”