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On Jan. 22, the Pew Charitable Trusts, which is an independent nonprofit organization that strives “to improve public policy, inform the public and stimulate civic life,” published a 19-page report called “Millennials in Philadelphia: A Promising but Fragile Boom.”
In it, both inspiring and frightening findings are shared. Namely, that Philadelphia is experiencing a population boom, one that can be attributed to an influx of young adults, but that many of them won’t stay as they start thinking about having families.
The percentages of 20- to 34-year-olds in South Philly’s zip codes are healthy: 21.7 percent in 19145; 34.9 percent in 19146; 36.1 percent in 19147; and 26.8 percent in 19148.
Larry Eichel, the report’s author and project director of the Philadelphia research initiative of the Pew Charitable Trusts, described the desirability of areas that aren’t too expensive yet and are within reasonable distances of Center City.
“The absolute numbers are still the highest in Center City, but the big growth is in the areas around Center City – areas that are relatively less expensive to live in. People are able to come in and start taking houses and rehabbing them,” Eichel detailed. “Those are the areas where a lot of young people are going now because they’re relatively affordable, and they’re relatively close to Center City. But obviously in 19146 and 19147, you can walk to Center City, or it’s a very short bus ride.”
But why would young folks leave?
From one figure in the report, the question “Would Philadelphia Millennials recommend the city as a place to raise children” solicited surprising results: 56 percent say “No” and 36 percent say “Yes.” Furthermore, to the question “How likely are you to be living in Philadelphia 5 to 10 years from now?”, Millennials were much harsher than “Older adults”: 21 percent say “Definitely not”; 29 percent reported they “Probably will not.”
“Some are here totally by choice, and those probably have more tolerance for the downsides with the city – they went in with their eyes open,” Eichel noted of the diversity within the Millennial set.
In the poll, 22 percent of Millennials cite “Crime/safety/drugs” as the main reason they would leave, but the largest two categories are jobs and kids: 38 percent say “Job/career” and 29 percent say “Schools/child upbringing.”
As Eichel notes, however, crime and schools may be a factor for flight. But there will always be a healthy population for whom the suburban life is the ideal.
“No matter how well the city does, on jobs or on education, some people who have the economic wherewithal to leave are going to leave – the schools look better in the suburbs, or where their kids can play in the street and [parents] feel more comfortable about it or in a yard. There are reasons why young families move to the suburbs, and you’re never going to destroy those.”
One week before the Pew report’s publication, Redfin, an online real estate brokerage born in Seattle in 2002, published a special report highlighting their “hottest neighborhoods.” While San Francisco’s Bernal Heights North Slope topped the nation list, two South Philadelphia neighborhoods made Philadelphia’s top five.
Wayne topped the list, but East Passyunk Crossing landed at the No. 3 spot and Newbold at No. 4. So what makes them “hot”?
Blakely Minton, a Redfin agent who covers the Philadelphia area, shared her insights.
“East Passyunk and Newbold residents are very active in their community,” she said. “This, paired with a fairly recent influx of popular shops and restaurants, makes the area very desirable.”
Not many Philadelphians would take it as a shock that few potential buyers are investing in real estate because of the flourishing public school system. But some Millennials are so committed to staying in an urban setting that schools won’t deter their determination.
“There is some evidence and some experts think that Millennials have a very strong affinity for city life, and in some ways, it’s going to take more to get them to leave, more so than previous generations,” Eichel said. “They really believe in urban life; the diversity of people and experiences is a big plus. They don’t want to leave, they see the suburbs as boring and vanilla.”
One such resident is Mindy Isser, 23, a resident of the 1600 block of South 19th Street and non-profit professional, bought her house in Point Breeze with the help of the City’s Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP). The Elkins Park-raised Temple alum’s not going anywhere.
“I never want to leave. I know that my future children will benefit from living in a neighborhood like Point Breeze, and from everything the city as a whole has to offer,” she elaborated. “I believe in the strength of public school. There are huge problems facing the school district right now, but putting kids in private school won’t save our schools – fighting for them will.”
Minton said that Millennials must prioritize in the process of home-buying and that sometimes family-building factors in, but that’s usually for the latter end of the young adult age bracket.
“Price, space and school district are always the biggest consideration for anyone buying a house, but I think even more so when someone is considering living in the city,” Minton said. “The good news for potential buyers is that some of the hottest neighborhoods can be affordable.”
Jestis Deuerlein, a 34-year-old entrepreneur who specializes in carpentry and finishing, rents on the 1600 block of Reed Street, where she lives with her husband, Eliott Waters, and 7-month-old daughter, Josey. She’s reaching a point where she’s entertaining ideas of public, private, charter, home or group-schooling for her daughter, but is pretty sure her family will seek space and woods for their girl’s upbringing.
“I think if we stayed, we’d definitely look into our neighborhood school and if that was a good environment, that’s where we’d send our kid,” she said. “School, ideally, is a great environment that helps foster a kid’s creativity and inspires them for life. Josey can go to any school, bad, good, and turn out basically intellectually the same because she’ll have a rich home life, and most of what you learn comes from home.” ■
Contact Staff Writer Bill Chenevert at bchenevert@southphillyreview.com or ext. 117. Comment at southphillyreview.com/news/features.
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