Durham named best city for millennials in US

DURHAM, NC (WTVD) -- Durham, North Carolina was named the best city for millennials in the United States by Growella using data from more than 70 public resources

For each of the 50 states, Growella asked the following questions:

Then, they placed "Best Places for Millennials to Live" into six categorical rankings:

1. How many entry-level jobs are available in the city? (7.5 percent of score)

2. How much time is spent commuting in the city? (7.5 percent of score)

3. What's the public transportation situation like in the city? (10 percent of score)

4. How many other young people live there? (15 percent of score)

5. What's the after-work and weekend scene like in the city? (10 percent of score)

6. How far does a paycheck get you in the city? (50 percent of score)

"If you had told somebody about a 27-story building in downtown Durham 15 years ago you would've had a hard time winning that bet," said Susan Amey, Chief Marketing Officer, Durham Convention and Visitors Bureau. "It's a combination of things that feed off each other. Part of it is that we have these young, diverse entrepreneurs that have started making this home."

Growella performed research related to each city's entry-level salary range, taxes charged to workers by the city and state, and the city's specific cost of living to find what a dollar earned in each city is actually worth.

"We used to have graduates who'd graduate and leave and go off to somewhere else. Now they want to stay," Amey said. "We've had graduates of our local universities who want to come back here and live."

Tony Hill, a Durham native, was more indifferent in his sardonic analysis.

"Durham has a lot of restaurants - that seems to attract millennials," Hill said. "It seems to be all they care about - restaurants and bars so there's that. There's really expensive rent - they seem to like that."

Others, who have moved to Durham, seemed pleased with the area.

"This area seems to be up and coming with some new spots," said Rachel Heydeck. "So seems like a good place for millennials."

Talal Asad agreed.

"I'd say it's a good place in the country for millennials to live," Asad said. "I wouldn't say it's the best - it's a really cool city."

Learn more about Durham

• Bites of Bull City: M Sushi
• Durham Eats: A look at Bar Virgile
• Durham Eats: A look at 21c's Counting House

So what are the best cities for Millennials?

1. Durham, North Carolina

2. Pittsburgh, Pennslyvania

3. Nashville, Tennessee

4. Des Moines, Iowa

5. Charlotte, North Carolina

6. Syracuse, New York

7. Columbus, Ohio

8. Austin, Texas

9. Greenville, South Carolina

10. Houston, Texas

11. Albany, New York

12. Dallas, Texas

13. Indianapolis, Indiana

For the complete list, click here.

"It was fabulous to see it get recognized this way. Durham is not the size of Austin and yet we've gotten this vibe," Amey said.