Tagged: population

Ethnic and racial minorities are now the majority in three more Texas counties.

According to recently released U.S. Census data, black and Hispanic Americans now make up the majority of the population in Bell, Hockley and Terrell counties. The Census Bureau has not determined whether this change is due to an increase in births among minorities or whether other populations are leaving the counties.

Update: So who is moving to Austin? Young, recent college graduates and retiring baby boomers make up the majority of new Austinites, according to City of Austin demographer Ryan Robinson.

“That attractiveness, that gravitational pull that we exert for the young and the talented, and the well-educated, that really is our sweet spot,” Robinson says.

But the young are not the only ones charmed by Austin. Retiring baby boomers are also flocking to the area.

Having trouble finding a place to rent? You’re definitely not alone.

A steady stream of people moving to Central Texas has made finding an apartment more difficult. U.S. Census Bureau data released in June ranked Round Rock second and Austin third on a list of the fastest-growing large cities in the country.

Capitol Market Research, which studies the area’s rental market, says there are barely enough apartment units in the Austin-area to keep up with demand. It says the average rent on a two-bedroom, two-bath apartment is now about $1,100 a month.

Hays County is growing so fast that it has to add more voting locations for the November election. “Because the 2010 Census showed a large increase in populations (about 60,000 people more) we are required by state law to have our main early voting site plus one site in each of our Commissioner Precincts,” Hays County Elections Administrator Joyce Cowan said in a statement. 

The voting sites also have to remain open for the entire two weeks of early voting, in addition to Election Day.

In the last presidential election, Hays County had only one main voting site.

Texas Dominates Population Growth

Round Rock is ranked second and Austin is ranked third on a list of the country’s fastest-growing large cities.

New estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau show Round Rock’s population increased by 4.8 percent from April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2011.

An analysis of the 2010 U.S. Census shows the population was slightly overcounted, by about 0.01 percent or 36,000 people.

That means the latest census was more accurate than the 2000 Census, which had an overcount of about 0.49 percent. Census Bureau Director Robert Groves says the 2010 Census was "outstanding." But the analysis found that accuracy varied by demographics.

The 2010 Census overcounted whites by .08 percent, undercounted 2.1 percent of the African-American population, and undercounted 1.5 percent of the Hispanic population.