Posted on: March 30, 2018
Last week, we posted highlights of the recent release of 2017 County Population estimates by the Census Bureau. We compared the change in population 2016-2017 in the Atlanta Metro to that of other large metros, as well as took a closer look at population change for the 10 member counties of the Atlanta Regional Commission. This week, we look at the two main drivers for population change: natural increase/decrease and net migration. Natural increase/decrease is determined by the balance of births and deaths. If births outnumber deaths in an area, that area is experiencing a natural increase. If there are more deaths than births, the area is experiencing a natural decrease. In addition to natural factors, net migration can add to, or take away from, an area’s population. If more people move into an area than move out, net migration is positive; if more move out than move in, net migration is negative. Less growth (or negative change) from births and deaths can be offset by a high positive net migration, and vice-versa.
|
Metro
|
Population, 2016
|
Population, 2017
|
Population Change, 2016-2017
|
Births (+)
|
Deaths (-)
|
Natural Change (+/-)
|
Net Migration (+/-)
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas | 7,253,424 | 7,399,662 | 146,238 | 102,423 | 45,826 | 56,597 | 89,627 |
| Houston | 6,798,010 | 6,892,427 | 94,417 | 102,941 | 41,404 | 61,537 | 32,722 |
| Atlanta | 5,795,723 | 5,884,736 | 89,013 | 73,810 | 38,540 | 35,270 | 53,739 |
| Phoenix | 4,648,498 | 4,737,270 | 88,772 | 59,592 | 34,376 | 25,216 | 63,359 |
| Washington, D.C. | 6,150,681 | 6,216,589 | 65,908 | 80,082 | 37,466 | 42,616 | 23,217 |
| Miami | 6,107,433 | 6,158,824 | 51,391 | 69,419 | 52,749 | 16,670 | 34,647 |
| New York | 20,275,179 | 20,320,876 | 45,697 | 245,608 | 152,112 | 93,496 | -48,021 |
| Boston | 4,805,942 | 4,836,531 | 30,589 | 51,406 | 37,620 | 13,786 | 16,890 |
| San Francisco | 4,699,077 | 4,727,357 | 28,280 | 52,292 | 32,483 | 19,809 | 8,595 |
| Los Angeles | 13,328,261 | 13,353,907 | 25,646 | 160,094 | 87,937 | 72,157 | -46,586 |
| Philadelphia | 6,077,152 | 6,096,120 | 18,968 | 70,230 | 56,165 | 14,065 | 5,120 |
| Chicago | 9,546,326 | 9,533,040 | -13,286 | 115,915 | 72,491 | 43,424 | -56,875 |
Atlanta ranks third in population increase 2016-2017 across the twelve largest metro areas. Positive net migration has driven the largest share (60%) of this growth (at nearly +54,000 during the year). For Atlanta, most of the in-migration (about 33,300) were domestic in-migrants, with a positive international in-migration of 20,450. In older, slower-growth metros (such as New York, Los Angeles and Chicago) net migration has recently been negative (see above), with any net population increase provided by natural increase (or by the fact that the number of births is higher than the number of deaths). Interestingly, for those three metros 2016-2017, while international migrants continued to move in, domestic migrants moved out in larger numbers.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Total Population, 2016
|
Total Population, 2017
|
Population Change, 2016-2017
|
Births (+)
|
Deaths (-)
|
Natural Change (+/-)
|
Net Migration (+/-)
|
| Cherokee County | 241,600 | 247,573 | 5,973 | 2,791 | 1,489 | 1,302 | 4,650 |
| Clayton County | 280,006 | 285,153 | 5,147 | 4,127 | 1,733 | 2,394 | 2,749 |
| Cobb County | 750,477 | 755,754 | 5,277 | 9,514 | 4,498 | 5,016 | 264 |
| DeKalb County | 746,690 | 753,253 | 6,563 | 11,021 | 4,637 | 6,384 | 223 |
| Douglas County | 142,021 | 143,882 | 1,861 | 1,762 | 1,015 | 747 | 1,121 |
| Fayette County | 111,248 | 112,549 | 1,301 | 895 | 864 | 31 | 1,286 |
| Fulton County | 1,024,248 | 1,041,423 | 17,175 | 13,053 | 7,127 | 5,926 | 11,187 |
| Gwinnett County | 907,101 | 920,260 | 13,159 | 11,700 | 4,475 | 7,225 | 5,976 |
| Henry County | 221,355 | 225,813 | 4,458 | 2,512 | 1,526 | 986 | 3,478 |
| Rockdale County | 89,375 | 90,312 | 937 | 1,012 | 684 | 328 | 616 |
Within the 10-county area 2016-2017, natural increase (49%) and net migration (51%) have accounted for nearly equal shares of population increase. Across the state as a whole, net migration (at 58%) has accounted for a comparatively larger share of net population growth than did natural increase. This is not surprising, as Atlanta’s greater racial and ethnic diversity has historically aligned with higher birthrates. Also interestingly, the ARC Region (2016-2017) captured 3 of 4 net international migrants statewide, as opposed to 1 in 3 net domestic migrants.
