Good luck trying to hub and spoke around this.
https://eig.org/how-remote-work-is-shifting-population-growth-across-the-u-s/
Key findings
- New county level population growth data reveal that 2021 marked a clear break from past trends, not a continuation of them.
- The patterns of growth are consistent with remote work being an important driver of population loss in dense urban counties. Further, the shrinking gap between urban and suburban home prices suggests a significant portion of this urban exodus is permanent, not driven by temporary pandemic-related factors.
- Factors associated with population loss in more urban counties are high home prices, density, lots of jobs that can be done from home, and a labor market agglomeration.
- Places that saw accelerated population growth included smaller, less urban counties with high concentrations of vacation homes and communities with long commute times, which suggests desirable locations pre-pandemic.