Most of the nation’s fastest-growing cities are in Texas, with several outpacing the U.S. average population growth rate of 2.6%, according to a new analysis from RealPage. Among U.S. cities with more than 20,000 residents, 12 of the 15 fastest-growing are located in the Lone Star State — and over half of those are within the Dallas-area apartment market.
Fulshear, Texas, a Houston suburb, topped the list, as its population surged 210% between 2020 and 2024, increasing from 17,600 to 54,600 residents.
Following closely was Celina, Texas, part of the Frisco submarket, with a 190% surge— from 17,800 residents in 2020 to 51,700 in 2024. Nearby Prosper, another Frisco submarket city, ranked 15th nationally, growing 44.4% to just over 44,500 residents.
The Allen/McKinney submarket in the Dallas metro area also made a strong showing with three cities on the list. Princeton ranked third, more than doubling its population to over 37,000 residents. Melissa and Anna followed in fifth and sixth place, each experiencing growth between 82% and 83% from 2020 to 2024.
In the Rockwall/Rowlett/Wylie submarket, Royse City and Fate ranked fourth and 12th, with population growth rates of 92% and 49%, respectively. Forney, located in Kaufman County east of Dallas, came in seventh with a 61.3% increase, reaching nearly 38,600 residents.
Austin’s metro area also made the top 15. Manor, in the East Austin submarket, ranked eighth thanks to a 53% boost. The Round Rock/Georgetown submarket placed two cities on the list: Hutto (ninth, 52% growth) and Georgetown (13th, 47.5%).
Only three cities outside of Texas made the top 15 – Haines City, Florida, ranked 10th, growing 50.5% from 2020 to 2024; Saratoga Springs, Utah, placed 11th with a 50% increase to 57,411 residents; and Amherst, Massachusetts, located north of Springfield, ranked 14th with a 47.4% increase.
According to RealPage, this explosive growth has gone hand-in-hand with a construction boom in multifamily housing.
“It’s no surprise that most of the submarkets containing the fastest-growing cities have had some of the nation’s most prolific apartment development,” the report stated.
In fact, eight out of the 10 submarkets housing the top 15 fastest-growing cities ranked among the top 25 nationally for apartment inventory growth between 2020 and 2024. With the exception of Orem/Lehi in Utah and Amherst/Hampshire County in Massachusetts, all saw apartment stock rise by roughly 60% to 90%, led by East Austin, which increased 87% and ranked third out of 997 submarkets nationwide.
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