Growing job markets bring population shifts with the influx leading to rising home prices. Of course, job seekers will also gravitate toward places they can afford to buy, with manageable debt-to-income ratios.

This especially rings true for younger professionals looking for locations where budget meets their lifestyle, according to Arch Mortgage Insurance Co.'s Housing and Mortgage Market Review.

"We went looking for what is powering these modern American boomtowns. We found it is not just tech jobs, city size or affordability, even though those do help," Ralph DeFranco, global chief economist for Arch Capital Services, said in a press release. "We think it's encouraging that there are multiple routes to becoming a magnet for economic activity. Strong growth can come from a favorable business climate, a strong tech sector and, of course, some luck in being well located for today's growing industries and younger workers' desire for outdoor recreation."

The job market being a zero-sum game, meaning while some cities saw major growth, others merely had tepid progress.

"We also looked at the flip side — where new boomtown residents are typically moving from, namely areas that are economically weaker and have much less job growth," said DeFranco.

That flip side references seven of the top 100 housing markets that experienced employment growth of 3% or lower, with the bottom three all coming in the Nutmeg State. Bridgeport and New Haven both had a change of only 2%, followed by Hartford with 3%.

By contrast, the top metro areas had employment inflations of 20% or more. From the Carolinas to the Sunshine State, here's a look at cities offering the biggest job growth of the past five years.

Arch measured the 100 most populated metro areas in the country, using data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The cities were ranked by job growth from the first quarter of 2014 to the first quarter of 2019, factoring in influences on home buying job seekers under 45 years old.
ArchMI

No. 15 Charlotte, N.C.

5-year employment growth: 16%
Total 5-year employment increase: 173,000
Hypothetical median DTI ratio: 26%
NMN032019-charlotte.jpg
Charlotte, North Carolina.
Kevin - stock.adobe.com

No. 14 Charleston, S.C.

5-year employment growth: 17%
Total 5-year employment increase: 53,000
Hypothetical median DTI ratio: 29%
Charleston, S.C.
Historical downtown area of Charleston, South Carolina, USA
Wasin Pummarin/f11photo - stock.adobe.com

No. 13 Phoenix, Ariz.

5-year employment growth: 17%
Total 5-year employment increase: 310,000
Hypothetical median DTI ratio: 29%
NMN041018-phoenix.jpg
Downtown Phoenix, Arizona.
Ivan Paunovic/Dreamframer - stock.adobe.com

No. 12 Ogden, Utah

5-year employment growth: 17%
Total 5-year employment increase: 39,000
Hypothetical median DTI ratio: 28%
NMN022119-ogden.jpeg
Jenny Thompson - stock.adobe.com

No. 11 North Port, Fla.

5-year employment growth: 17%
Total 5-year employment increase: 46,000
Hypothetical median DTI ratio: 33%
North Port, Fla.
Warm Mineral Springs In North Port, Florida
MISHELA - stock.adobe.com

No. 10 Fresno, Calif.

5-year employment growth: 18%
Total 5-year employment increase: 54,000
Hypothetical median DTI ratio: 33%
Fresno, Calif.
STELLA MC/stellamc - stock.adobe.com

No. 9 Las Vegas, Nev.

5-year employment growth: 18%
Total 5-year employment increase: 155,000
Hypothetical median DTI ratio: 33%
NMN011818-lasvegas.jpg
Las Vegas downtown.
MIRKO VITALI/Mirko - stock.adobe.com

No. 8 Dallas, Texas

5-year employment growth: 18%
Total 5-year employment increase: 409,000
Hypothetical median DTI ratio: 30%
NMN100418-dallas.jpg
videowerx66 - stock.adobe.com

No. 7 Austin, Texas

5-year employment growth: 19%
Total 5-year employment increase: 170,000
Hypothetical median DTI ratio: 31%
Austin, Texas
Brian Hellemn/Still Motion Media - stock.adobe.com

No. 6 Nashville, Tenn.

5-year employment growth: 19%
Total 5-year employment increase: 166,000
Hypothetical median DTI ratio: 26%
NMN052218-nashville-opry.jpg
unknown/Dave Newman - stock.adobe.com

No. 5 Riverside, Calif.

5-year employment growth: 19%
Total 5-year employment increase: 245,000
Hypothetical median DTI ratio: 38%
NMN062018-riverside.jpg
Evening light on on distant mountains and the city of Riverside, from Mount Rubidoux Park, in Riverside, California.
jonbilous - stock.adobe.com

No. 4 San Francisco, Calif.

5-year employment growth: 20%
Total 5-year employment increase: 192,000
Hypothetical median DTI ratio: 84%
NMN100418-san-francisco.jpg
View of colorful San Francisco row homes looking down a steep city street
Andy Konieczny/Focqus, LLC - stock.adobe.com

No. 3 Orlando, Fla.

5-year employment growth: 21%
Total 5-year employment increase: 233,000
Hypothetical median DTI ratio: 32%
Orlando, Fla.
Aerial view of Orlando Florida. Clear view of Valencia College Ln road.
Javier Cruz Acosta/Javier C. Acosta - stock.adobe.com

No. 2 Boise City, Idaho

5-year employment growth: 21%
Total 5-year employment increase: 60,000
Hypothetical median DTI ratio: 32%
boise-0829-adobe.jpg
Idaho state vcapital in Boise Idaho with fall colors
Charles Knowles/knowlesgallery - stock.adobe.com

No. 1 Cape Coral, Fla.

5-year employment growth: 23%
Total 5-year employment increase: 51,000
Hypothetical median DTI ratio: 31%
Cape Coral, Fla.
Cape Coral, Florida.
Nadezda Murmakova/murmakova - stock.adobe.com
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