Texas is home to second largest population of millionaires in the U.S.

The Millionaires Club

73,930 Texans were classified as millionaire tax filers in 2022. Photo via Getty Images

Tilman Fertitta, Elon Musk, Alice Walton, and Jerry Jones are members of the billionaires club in Texas. But just how many millionaires does the Lone Star State boast?

Altogether, 73,930 Texans were classified as millionaire tax filers in 2022, according to an analysis of IRS data by digital marketing firm Hennessey Digital. (For context, that millionaire count is just a few thousand shy of the entire population of Missouri City.) This figure puts Texas in the No. 2 spot for the country’s biggest population of millionaire taxpayers, behind first-place California.

However, if you crunch the figures a different way, Texas’ millionaire status isn’t quite as impressive, demonstrating that not everything is bigger in Texas. Texas ranks 10th among the states with the highest proportions of millionaire taxpayers, the study indicates. According to Hennessey Digital’s calculations, 27.1 of every 10,000 Texas tax filers reported adjusted gross income of at least $1 million for the 2022 tax year.

“The state’s booming economy, driven by energy, technology, and business-friendly policies, contributes to its wealthy population,” says Hennessey Digital.

Forbes ranked 43 Texans among the 400 wealthiest Americans last year, with Elon Musk topping the list. Houston hospitality king, Rockets owner, and newly appointed ambassador to Italy Tilman Fertitta was the 12th richest Texan and the 99th richest person in the United States, according to Forbes.

Which state comes out on top for the largest share of millionaire taxpayers? Connecticut, with 44.76 millionaire tax filers for every 10,000 filers, the Hennessey study shows. A number of well-to-do Connecticut suburbs are situated just a commuter train ride away from New York City, where bankers, brokers, and others pull in the big bucks. (Connecticut sits two spots above New York state in the millionaire ranking.)

The numbers in the study “highlight the diverse economic landscapes across our nation. States with favorable tax policies and thriving industries tend to attract more high-income earners,” says Jason Hennessey, CEO of Hennessey Digital. “Understanding these patterns can provide valuable insights for businesses and individuals making decisions about where to live, work, or invest.”

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This story originally appeared on our sister site, CultureMap.com.

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It's never too early to start thinking about the holiday shopping season. Photo by Claudio Schwarz on Unsplash

Texas ranks No. 5 worst state for package delays in U.S., report says

out for delivery

One of the biggest headaches of online shopping and package shipping is the potential for delivery issues, and Texas is among the worst places for them, according to a new study.

Online retailer Overnight Glasses determined that Texas is the No. 5 worst state for package delays, based on a nationwide analysis of internet searches regarding delayed or lost packages, statewide United States Postal Service (USPS) performances, and freight flows per capita.

The data showed Texas had the highest freight flow compared to the rest of the U.S., raking in $3.64 billion. But the state’s massive population is a major factor contributing to “logistical challenges,” as shown in Texas’ local USPS performance rates.

“The USPS performance rate in Texas at an average 65 percent, and issues with timely deliveries, as reflected in the search value of 85.0 gives the state a high position in the ranking,” the report said.

Given the vast number of packages being sent through Texas’ delivery infrastructure, it’s safe to say Santa's going to be working overtime to fulfill the online orders for Houston's biggest spenders over the holidays.

The absolute worst place in the U.S. for package delays was North Dakota, which ranked as the No. 1 worst state for package delays.

The study found residents frequently search delivery issue terms such as “package delayed” or “order not delivered,” which doesn’t bode well for a state with a population of just 783,000.

“In today’s world, where everyone expects quick deliveries, even small hiccups can lead to a lot of frustration,” an Overnight Glasses spokesperson said. “I think this study highlights a real need for companies to invest in better, more flexible logistics networks, especially in states where freight flow is high.”

The best state for getting your packages delivered in a timely manner was Hawaii, followed by Oklahoma, West Virginia, Maryland, and Mississippi.

The top 10 worst U.S. states for package delivery issues are:

  • No. 1 – North Dakota
  • No. 2 – Georgia
  • No. 3 – Illinois
  • No. 4 – New York
  • No. 5 – Texas
  • No. 6 – Wyoming
  • No. 7 – Washington
  • No. 8 – Virginia
  • No. 9 – Massachusetts
  • No. 10 – South Carolina

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

Here's how Texas towns stacked up on a new population report. Photo via Getty Images

Booming Houston suburb, other Texas towns among the fastest-growing U.S. cities in 2023

by the numbers

One Houston suburb experienced one of the most rapid growth spurts in the country last year: Fulshear, whose population grew by 25.6 percent, more than 51 times that of the nation’s growth rate of 0.5 percent. The city's population was 42,616 as of July 1, 2023.

According to U.S. Census Bureau's Vintage 2023 Population Estimates, released Thursday, May 16, Fulshear — which lies west of Katy in northwest Fort Bend County - ranked No. 2 on the list of fastest-growing cities with a population of 20,000 or more. It's no wonder iconic Houston restaurants like Molina's Cantina see opportunities there.

The South still dominates the nation's growth, even as America’s Northeast and Midwest cities are rebounding slightly from years of population drops. The census estimates showed 13 of the 15 fastest-growing cities in the U.S. were in the South — eight in Texas alone.

The Texas cities joining Fulshear on the fastest-growing-cities list are:

  • Celina (No. 1) with 26.6 percent growth (42,616 total population)
  • Princeton (No. 3) with 22.3 percent growth (28,027 total population)
  • Anna (No. 4) with 16.9 percent growth (27,501 total population)
  • Georgetown (No. 8) with 10.6 percent growth (96,312 total population)
  • Prosper (No. 9) with 10.5 percent growth (41,660 total population)
  • Forney (No. 10) with 10.4 percent growth (35,470 total population)
  • Kyle (No. 11) with 9 percent growth (62,548 total population)

Texas trends
San Antonio saw the biggest growth spurt in the United States last year, numbers-wise. The Alamo City added about 22,000 residents. San Antonio now has nearly 1.5 million people, making it the the seventh largest city in the U.S. and second largest in Texas.

Its population boom was followed by those of other Southern cities, including Fort Worth; Charlotte, North Carolina; Jacksonville, Florida; and Port St. Lucie, Florida.

Fast-growing Fort Worth (978,000) surpassed San Jose, California (970,000) to become the 12th most populous city in the country.

Meanwhile, population slowed in the Austin area. Jacksonville, Florida (986,000), outpaced Austin (980,000), pushing the Texas capital to 11th largest city in the U.S. (barely ahead of Fort Worth).

Population growth in Georgetown, outside Austin, slowed by more than one-fourth its population growth in 2022, the report says, from 14.4 percent to 10.6 percent. It's the same story in the Central Texas city of Kyle, whose population growth decreased by nearly 2 percent to 9 percent in 2023.

Most populated cities
New York City with nearly 8.3 million people remained the nation's largest city in population as of July 1, 2023. Los Angeles was second at close to 4 million residents, while Chicago was third at 2.7 million and Houston was fourth at 2.3 million residents.

The 15 populous U.S. cities in 2023 were:

  1. New York, New York (8.3 million)
  2. Los Angeles, California (4 million)
  3. Chicago, Illinois (2.7 million)
  4. Houston, Texas (2.3 million)
  5. Phoenix, Arizona (1.7 million)
  6. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1.6 million)
  7. San Antonio (1.5 million)
  8. San Diego, California (1.4 million)
  9. Dallas (1.3 million)
  10. Jacksonville, Florida (986,000)
  11. Austin (980,000)
  12. Fort Worth (978,000)
  13. San Jose (970,000)
  14. Columbus, Ohio (913,000)
  15. Charlotte, North Carolina (911,000)

Modest reversals of population declines were seen last year in large cities in the nation's Northeast and Midwest. Detroit, for example, which grew for the first time in decades, had seen an exodus of people since the 1950s. Yet the estimates released Thursday show the population of Michigan’s largest city rose by just 1,852 people from 631,366 in 2022 to 633,218 last year.

It's a milestone for Detroit, which had 1.8 million residents in the 1950s only to see its population dwindle and then plummet through suburban white flight, a 1967 race riot, the migration to the suburbs by many of the Black middle class and the national economic downturn that foreshadowed the city's 2013 bankruptcy filing.

Three of the largest cities in the U.S. that had been bleeding residents this decade staunched those departures somewhat. New York City, which has lost almost 550,000 residents this decade so far, saw a drop of only 77,000 residents last year, about three-fifths the numbers from the previous year.

Los Angeles lost only 1,800 people last year, following a decline in the 2020s of almost 78,000 residents. Chicago, which has lost almost 82,000 people this decade, only had a population drop of 8,200 residents last year.

And San Francisco, which has lost a greater share of residents this decade than any other big city — almost 7.5 percent — actually grew by more than 1,200 residents last year.

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

Houstonians live well. Photo via Getty Images

Houston scores respectable rank in new report of best U.S. cities for working-class families

is the living easy?

A new economic analysis by the Ludwig Institute for Shared Economic Prosperity (LISEP) has revealed that Houston-The-Woodlands-Sugar Land has the 30th most prosperous local economy in the nation. The analysis ranked the 50 largest Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) in the U.S. based on several localized economic factors.

According to Houston's data, the region's population has skyrocketed 18.7 percent within the last decade, now reaching over 7.34 million people. The median age of an Houston-area resident is 35.1-years-old.

The three main criteria that determined Houston's prospering rank include a "True Living Cost" metric that tracks price changes for essential household necessities; a "True Weekly Earnings" calculation that determines the median weekly earnings of all workers (including part-timers and those who are unemployed); and a "True Rate of Unemployment Out of the Population" metric that measures the percentage of people unable to find full-time employment with a living wage.

The findings show that a little more than half of all Houston-area households are earning enough income to afford their basic needs. The remaining 46.4 percent are struggling due to a high cost of living, the report said.

"The total costs of necessities for a 4-person family [in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land] increased 58.2 percent since 2005 from $54,052 to $85,492," the report said.

Furthermore, Houstonians are bringing home higher weekly earnings than they were in 2020. Houston workers are earning a median $894.89 per week, or about $47,429.17 a year. The report states the average employee has gained 8.2 percent more purchasing power since 2005, and the average Houston household has 8.1 percent of their income leftover after their necessities.

Houston's "True Rate of Unemployment Out of the Population" is 63 percent, according to the analysis.

The objective behind LISEP's report is to help policymakers assess their local economies' dynamics and to assess how much low-income and working-class families are affected, according to LISEP Chairman Gene Ludwig in the release.

"Across the nation we are seeing both ends of the spectrum — communities where middle- and working-class families are faring well and others where financial survival remains a struggle," Ludwig said. "Our challenge here is in identifying what's working well and replicating it; what's not, and scrapping it. This is where real-world data can be invaluable to policymakers."

Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land wasn't the only Texas metro area to earn a spot in the analysis. Austin-Round Rock worked its way up into No. 2 nationally, while San Antonio-New Braunfels ranked just outside the top 10 at No. 13. Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington ranked four spots higher than Houston at No. 26.

The top 10 highest-performing economies in the U.S. are:

  • No. 1 – San Jose-Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, California
  • No. 2 – Austin-Round Rock, Texas
  • No. 3 – San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, California
  • No. 4 – Baltimroe-Columbia-Towson, Maryland
  • No. 5 – Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, District of Columbia-Virginia-Maryland
  • No. 6 – Minneapolis-St. Paul-Blookington, Minnesota-Wisconsin
  • No. 7 – Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, Oregon-Washington
  • No. 8 – Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, Wisconsin
  • No. 9 – Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, Colorado
  • No. 10 – Salt Lake City, Utah
The full report and its methodology can be found on lisep.org.

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

The Texas/California pipeline works both ways, a new study reveals. Photo via Getty Images

Texas and California battle it out for most relocating residents, Census report says

by the numbers

Texans love to joke about how many Californians are moving here, but a rising trend in Texas residents' relocation habits may have Californians saying the same thing about Texans soon.

A new U.S. Census report analyzing state-to-state migration has revealed new estimates regarding Texas' growing population in 2022. According to the report, more than 668,000 new residents relocated to Texas from out-of-state last year.

Not surprisingly, the highest number of new Texans hailed from California. More than 102,000 Californians made the move to the Lone Star State in 2022.

But in a fun population twist, California also received the most Texpats in 2022, the report showed, followed closely behind by Florida, then Oklahoma. Of the 494,077 people who left Texas last year, 42,279 went to California.

Why Californians move to Texas
Californians often seek out a lower cost of living by moving to the most "affordable" cities in the state. Houston has shown to be at the top of the priority destination list; Dallas usurped Austin as the No. 1 city for California movers earlier this year. And when a California transplant can save more than $646,000 by moving to Texas and buying a home in Houston, it's not hard to see the appeal

Other reasons for the California-to-Texas exodus include the lack of income tax and the flexibility of remote work opportunities, they say.

While California took the lead with the most new movers flocking to Texas, Floridians are also choosing to pack up and leave their Sunshine State for the Lone Star State, the report says.

The top 5 states with the most residents moving to Texas in 2022 were:

  • California – 102,442 new residents
  • Florida – 41,747 new residents
  • New York – 30,890 new residents
  • Illinois – 25,272 new residents
  • Louisiana – 25,192 new residents

Where Texans are moving
The Census report showed that less than half a million Texas residents relocated out-of-state last year, totaling 494,077 people.

"Texas had the country's lowest (11.7 percent) outmigration rate, with most of those who did move relocating to California (42,479) or Florida (38,207)," the report said.

The top five states where Texans moved in 2022 were:

  • California – 42,279 Texans
  • Florida – 38,207 Texans
  • Oklahoma – 26,440 Texans
  • Colorado – 25,466 Texans
  • Georgia – 23,754 Texans

New Texans from abroad
In addition to state-by-state migration data, the report also provided estimates for how many new Texans came from abroad. Out of 237,051 new residents, the majority – 233,751 people – relocated from outside the mainland last year.

About 2,441 people moved from Puerto Rico, and 859 arrived from unspecified U.S. island areas.

Texas has been a magnet for international homebuyers for several years. The state has held its position as the third hottest U.S. housing market for international homebuyers for the fourth consecutive year in 2023. A total of 9,900 Texas homes were purchased by buyers from outside the U.S last year, spending a gigantic sum of $4.3 billion.

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

Chicago and New York residents are eyeing Houston. Getty Images

Report finds two major metros are the biggest sources of new Houstonians

new to hou

Despite the current state of things — a pandemic, historic unemployment numbers, and an unstable economy — people are still thinking of moving. And, according to Apartment List, they have eyes on Texas.

The website's quarterly Renter Migration Report is out, using searches made on its platform between January 1 and April 15, 2020, to map where renters are looking to make their next move.

Chicago (3.3 percent), New York (3.4 percent), and San Antonio (22.8 percent) are also eyeing Houston, while H-Town residents are looking to keep it close in Dallas (8.9 percent), San Antonio (6.8 percent), and Austin (6.6 percent).

Austin is the most popular Texas city in the report, with the region increasingly being seen as an alternative to the expensive coastal metros where tech jobs have historically clustered. A staggering 70.9 percent of searches for apartments in Austin come from outside the metro, Apartment List reports, the highest share among the nation's 50 largest metros.

Aside from the 25 percent searching from San Antonio, the 4.6 percent from Dallas, and the 4.5 percent from Houston, 4.2 percent of renters searching for apartments in Austin currently live in the New York City metro. Furthermore, 2.5 percent of inbound searches to Austin are coming from Los Angeles and an additional 2.5 percent are coming from the San Francisco Bay Area.

For as many people who want to enter Austin from San Antonio, there's nearly the same amount that would be doing the opposite. Austin renters searched for San Antonio (16.8 percent), Dallas (7.9 percent), and College Station (6.4 percent).

While current Chicago residents and New Yorkers are typing "Dallas" into their search bars, accounting for 3.6 percent and 3 percent of data exploring Big D, respectively, it's San Antonians who are truly interested. A whopping 23.1 percent of current Alamo City residents made exploratory apartment searches in Dallas this past quarter. Overall, 32.8 percent of those looking for a place to live in Dallas are searching from outside the metro.

Meanwhile, 8.7 percent of apartment hunters currently living in Dallas are looking to move elsewhere. They searched for Houston (4.9 percent), San Antonio (4.8 percent), and Los Angeles (4.5 percent).

And though we've heard about it several times, where does San Antonio fall in all this? Turns out renters who currently live there are thinking about moving to Dallas (17.7 percent), followed by Houston (12.4 percent) and Austin (8.4 percent). Residents of McAllen (5 percent), Dallas (3.9 percent), and Houston (3.5 percent) are considering making San Antonio home.

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This article originally ran on CultureMap.

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New Houston platform Same Day Reels launches for on-demand content creation

In The Moment

If an event doesn't happen on Instagram, did it even really happen? In today's social media-driven age of branding and audience engagement, the answer increasingly is no.

Houston entrepreneur Karen De Amat is looking to fill the online content creation needs of companies with her new venture, Same Day Reels, which launched in early August. It will serve as a platform to connect companies and brands with talent that can help turn an event into a viral moment as it is happening.

"Events move quickly, and social media moves even faster,” said De Amat. “Same Day Reels was built to help brands capture the moment while it still matters. We are creating a more efficient way for businesses and creators to work together. Brands need content faster, and creators need more opportunities to turn their talent into real work. Same Day Reels brings those needs together.”

The company is focused on adding livestreams and concurrent short video content to "activations, launches, fundraisers, grand openings, conferences, hospitality experiences, and private celebrations." Such content can significantly increase the visibility of a product or brand according to digital marketing brands like Wyzowl, whose data found 63 percent of people in 2026 prefer to learn about new products via short video.

Packages offered by Same Day Reels will include filming, editing, and publishing content within hours of the targeted event.

De Amat says that her content creation platform will be a way to preserve the excitement of events and launches by enshrining them with immediate social media-driven memories.

“Event content is no longer just something you post after the fact,” De Amat said. “It is part of how people experience, remember and share the moment.”

Previously, De Amat is also the founder and CEO of Social Behavior, an influencer marketing company she launched from her home in 2014. It quickly garnered an array of clients and thrust De Amat into the spotlight, including numerous appearances on Fox 26's The Isiah Factor. Influencer Marketing Hub named her one of the top CEOs of influencer marketing companies in Houston in 2025.

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This article originally appeared on CultureMap.com.

Bristol Myers Squibb to build $2.3B Houston pharma manufacturing campus

coming soon

New Jersey-based pharmaceutical giant Bristol Myers Squibb Co. has officially named Houston as the home of its new state-of-the-art manufacturing site.

The 60,000-square-foot facility represents a $2.3 billion investment, according to a news release. It is expected to create 500 skilled jobs and will be located in Houston's Generation Park.

BMS first announced that it was considering Houston among 16 other cities for the facility in May. The new hub will manufacture small molecule, biologic and antibody-drug conjugates and is part of a $40 billion commitment to invest in the United States over five years. Construction is slated to begin next year, with the facility coming online in 2030.

"We're building the domestic manufacturing capabilities needed to deliver the next generation of medicines and support future scientific breakthroughs. Houston and the state of Texas offer the talent, infrastructure, and partnership needed to help bring that vision to life," Christopher Boerner, CEO and board chair of BMS, said in the release.

The new facility will feature a modular, multi-modal design, which will allow the company to reconfigure and add to its manufacturing capabilities over time. BMS says it expects the facility to "(grow) in scale and capability well beyond its opening configuration."

"Our decision to build this state-of-the-art manufacturing campus in Houston, Texas, reflects our confidence in the region’s ability to support a world-class, digitally advanced supply operation,” Karin Shanahan, EVP and chief supply chain and operations officer of BMS, added in the release. “This facility is designed to deliver the speed, quality, and reliability that patients depend on, combining flexible, modular manufacturing with advanced digital capabilities to ensure consistent supply across multiple modalities. It strengthens our ability to operate with resilience and positions us to reliably deliver medicines to patients today while adapting future demands.”

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott shared that the state has granted BMS a $4.89 million Texas Enterprise Fund (TEF) grant for the project. TEF grants, administered by the Texas Economic Development & Tourism Office, support business relocation or expansion projects that create "new, good-paying jobs in the community and attract significant new capital investment to the state." The development is also a qualified project under the Texas Jobs, Energy, Technology, and Innovation (JETI) program.

“Texas is a global hub for life sciences, where today’s innovations shape the future of healthcare,” Abbott said in a news release. “This $2.3 billion investment by Bristol Myers Squibb in the dynamic biotech ecosystem in Houston is a testament to the depth of our skilled workforce and the pipeline of talent coming through our nation-leading technical colleges and research universities. With lower operating costs and easy access to markets across the U.S. and the world, Texas drives affordability for consumers.”

"Bristol Myers Squibb’s announcement is a tremendous win for Texas and the Houston region, further reinforcing our position as a premier destination for life sciences and advanced manufacturing,” added Greater Houston Partnership President and CEO Steve Kean.

Last fall, Eli Lilly and Co. selected Generation Park, a 4,300-acre, master-planned commercial district near Lake Houston, for its $6.5 billion manufacturing plant. More than 300 locations in the U.S. competed for the factory. Read more here.

Texas foundation makes massive $180M donation to Galveston hospital

historic gift

The University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston (UTMB) has accepted a staggering $130 million grant from the Sealy & Smith Foundation, which, combined with the $50 million that the foundation donated in 2025 to establish the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, is the largest bequest in UTMB history.

The grant will go to grow cardiovascular imaging, diagnosis, and treatment at UTMB by establishing an inpatient cardiovascular hub on the sixth floor of Jennie Sealy Hospital. In honor of the donation, the department is being renamed the Sealy Heart and Vascular Institute.

“The Sealy & Smith Foundation has a long history of investing in initiatives that transform health care for the people of Galveston and beyond,” said John Kelso, president of The Sealy & Smith Foundation Board of Directors. “We believe the Sealy Heart & Vascular Institute has the potential to redefine cardiovascular care in our region by bringing together exceptional physicians, advanced technology, innovative research and a commitment to improving patient outcomes. This additional investment reflects our confidence in UTMB’s vision and our belief that the Institute will have a lasting impact for generations to come.”

The Sealy & Smith Foundation was established in 1922 by John Sealy II and his sister Jennie Sealy Smith. Bolstered by the Sealy fortune built on shipping, oil, banking, and railroads, the Foundation has donated more than $1.2 billion to UTMB over the last century, linking the family legacy to healthcare, teaching, and research. It was John Sealy Sr. who contributed the initial $50,000 to build a hospital on the island, which opened right alongside the new medical school created by the state legislator in what was then Texas's largest and most economically powerful city.

Since then, the Foundation has helped grow UTMB into a world-class hospital. The cardiovascular care especially is well-regarded, making the 2025 Newsweek/Statista List of America's Best Hospitals.

“This extraordinary investment reflects The Sealy & Smith Foundation’s unwavering commitment to improving health and advancing medical excellence,” said Dr. Jochen Reiser, UTMB president and CEO of the UTMB Health System. “The partnership between UTMB and The Sealy & Smith Foundation is very strong. Built on generations of shared vision and trust, it continues to redefine what an academic health system can achieve. Together, we are building one of the nation’s premier cardiovascular programs integrating exceptional patient care, groundbreaking research, innovation and world-class education to improve the lives of patients throughout Texas and beyond.”

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This article originally appeared on CultureMap.com.

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