Is Colorado booming as fast as what the residents are saying? SmartAsset believes so! In their study to find the top boomtowns in the country, SmartAsset dug through the most recently available data for 500 of the largest cities across seven metrics (population change, unemployment rate, change in unemployment rate, GDP growth rate, business growth, housing growth, and change in household income) and named seven Colorado cities in the top 50, with Longmont in the number one spot. Here are some highlights:
Longmont
Longmont leads the way in this study, ranking in the number one spot. It fell in the top 25 percent of the study in all seven metrics that were considered and ranks ninth overall for its yearly GDP growth from 2013 to 2017, at more than 5 percent. As well as having top-30 rates for unemployment and high five-year housing growth rate, at 2.6 percent and roughly 18 percent.
Greeley
Ranked #5, Greeley had double the average population change out of all the cities in the study, at almost a 9 percent increase from 2014 through 2018. Greeley tied with Longmont with having the lowest unemployment in the top 10, at 2.6 percent. Its economy is thriving! From August 2018 to July 2019, the city experienced a decrease in unemployment rate of 0.5 percent and an annual GDP growth of more than 5 percent from 2019 to 2018.
Denver
Ranked #7, Denver has the 35th lowest unemployment rate in the study, at 2.7 percent. From August 2018 to July 2019, the city experienced a decrease in its unemployment rate of 0.6 percent, which was the second-largest decrease for cities ranking in the top 10. Denver also experienced an increase in its GDP by more than 3 percent annually from 2013 to 2017 and an 8 percent increase in population.
Other Colorado cities that made the top 50 are Fort Collins at #15, Highlands Ranch at #30, Arvada at #34, and Thornton at #42.