Geography of Opportunity: Understanding Urban Migration & Impact

Join the Civitas Institute for a private lunch at the Cornell Club to get an early look at our new report, The Geography of Opportunity, by Senior Research Fellow Joel Kotkin. The report focuses on the major economic and demographic shifts affecting America, including New York. Like most big cities, particularly in high-tax, high-regulation states, New York has suffered considerable out-migration of both people and business, including the shift of financial services to places like Dallas-Ft. Worth and Miami. But at least New York still has the advantages of enormous amenities and historical inertia; most others are doing worse. This evolution in our economic geography extends past NYC too: between 2020 and 2024, America’s urban-core counties saw about 3.26 million people leave, and now, fewer than 1 in 10 Americans want to live in a big city. What went wrong? And does this have any correlation with the rise of socialism in many urban centers? The key trend we follow is decentralization. Most people are heading not to core cities but to suburbs, exurbs, and smaller cities and, to some extent, small towns. The report discusses what this means for the future of jobs, housing, and governance.