Atlanta hasn’t stopped growing. But its momentum is at risk.
Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com
Reports of Atlanta’s demise are greatly exaggerated.
A Wall Street Journal article from July 20 titled “Atlanta’s growth streak has come to an end” portends the fall of the Big Peach.
But the Journal singles out one figure in a U.S. Census report on population change among metropolitan statistical areas from July 1, 2023, to July 1, 2024.
It’s true that 1,328 more residents moved out of the Atlanta area than moved in, but that’s just one data point in the report.
It’s also true that metro Atlanta grew by 75,134 residents during that same period because of births and the influx of international residents. The total population of the 29-county region is 6.4 million.
The region ranked eighth among 387 U.S. metropolitan regions in population growth, after New York, Houston, Dallas, Miami, Washington, D.C., Phoenix and Orlando, Florida.
The provocative story said the region is “finally cooling off,” an assertion based on one year’s data. However, the Journal story also rightly identifies pain points afflicting Atlanta including the rising cost of housing and worsening traffic flow, which leads to a poorer quality of life.
Cost of housing is a problem for many Big Peach residents
The AJC has reported on this phenomenon in numerous stories in recent years:
- Homebuyers need an average household income of $120,000 to afford a house in an area where the median income is $90,000
- Institutional investors own 30% of single-family housing inventory in Atlanta
- Atlanta had the second highest rate of gentrification in the nation from 1980 to 2020, calling into question whether the historically majority African American city is still the “Black mecca”
- The astronomically growing number of data centers impacts available land, power supply and water resources
Longtime residents and people on working-class salaries cannot keep up with the cost of living — a problem not unique to Atlanta, but one that casts a pall on its future growth aspirations without action and intentionality.
That’s why, according to the Journal article, former residents are seeking out smaller communities, such as Chattanooga, Tennessee; Huntsville, Alabama; and Knoxville, Tennessee.
Domestic migration increased in those regions: 4,678, 10,380 and 9,661 residents, respectively. However, deaths exceeded births in Chattanooga and Knoxville, by 378 and 1,822, respectively. In Huntsville, there were fewer than 1,000 more births than deaths.
An onslaught of new residents will export some of the big city problems including putting upward pressure on housing costs and creating more traffic congestion.
Of course, metro Atlanta’s population is substantially larger, but its total of 26,916 more births than deaths show the region is not done growing. Not anytime soon.
Atlanta’s dominance in many business lists continues
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
The Metro Atlanta Chamber has documented the city’s success in a number of national rankings, including:
- No. 1 in best city to start a career, highest share of Black businesses, best city for young professionals
- No. 2 in greatest increase in Black-owned businesses
- No. 3 in best city for entrepreneurs, headquarters and small businesses
The U.S. unemployment rate is 4.1% versus 3.3% for the Atlanta area. In addition, the state of Georgia houses 17 Fortune 500 companies.
Metro Atlanta still has the distinction of hosting the busiest airport in the world — because despite its challenges, it’s a region that takes growth, business and diversity seriously.
Moreover, both The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times reported in July about the dynamic sports scene in Atlanta, highlighted most recently during the MLB All-Star Game. The Journal story contended that even though the Braves have a losing record, “everyone in baseball is trying to copy them” because of the excitement around Truist Park and The Battery Atlanta dining and entertainment complex.
Metro Atlanta is still a vibrant place. That was evident during the Peachtree Road Race on July 4 where 52,000 runners participated and passed by an array of restaurants, shops and screaming fans. This is a place people want to live in and visit.
All this said, leaders should not scoff at net migration numbers showing a reduction of 1,328 people across the metro area. The decline in the net migration figure should put center stage the need for finding the right new leadership for MARTA, advancing public-private partnerships to enhance housing options accessible to residents of all socioeconomic backgrounds and ensuring that visitors to the area — possibly future residents — have a second-to-none experience in a global city.
No city should rest on its laurels and Atlanta must work hard to ensure it continues its prosperity.
David Plazas is the opinion editor of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and serves on the AJC Editorial Board. Email him at david.plazas@ajc.com.
About the Author
David Plazas joined The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in May 2025 after a 25-year award-winning career as a reporter, editor and opinion editor for The News-Press in Fort Myers, Florida, and most recently, The Tennessean in Nashville, Tennessee, as an opinion writer and editor, video podcast host, newsletter writer and sought-after moderator.
