Big City News
Fort Worth + 5 neighbors rank among fastest-growing affordable cities

Fort Worth is fast-growing and affordable.
A new national study has declared Texas is home to the most affordable, fast-growing cities in the country, and Fort Worth makes the list.
Fort Worth ranks No. 26 on GoBankingRates.com's new list of "50 Most Affordable, Fastest-Growing Cities in 2025."
The Dallas suburb Frisco tops the national rankings at No. 1, and four more North Texas cities appear on the list: McKinney, Allen, Lewisville, and Denton.
The personal finance website's experts analyzed U.S. cities to find the most affordable places with large population growth based one-year and five-year population growth rates higher than the national average. Additional factors considered include each city's median household income, average home values, average rental cost, and average mortgage cost.
No. 26-ranked Fort Worth's population grew 10 percent over the last five years, with residents making a median household income of $76,602 annually. The average home value in the city limits is a little more than $300,000, the report found.
By comparison, No. 1-ranked Frisco's population swelled nearly 27 percent over the last five years, though it does appear to be slowing down as the suburb's one-year growth rate was only 4 percent. However, its rapid growth further proves that this buzzy city is one of the most desirable places to move to.
Suburban dwellers love Frisco.
City of Frisco TX - City Hall/Facebook
The study also found the average Frisco home is valued at more than $678,000, which at first glance isn't as affordable as other DFW cities. However, GoBankingRates deems this "affordable" since the median Frisco household income is $146,000.
The study also determined the total cost of living for a Frisco homeowner comes out to $72,262 annually. Renters have a cheaper cost of living, totaling $46,718 per year.
McKinney and Allen each landed at top-five spots in the report, earning respectable ranks as the third and fifth most affordable and fast-growing U.S. cities. Both cities had higher five-year growth rates than the national average – 16.6 percent in McKinney and 8.5 percent in Allen – and they both have similar average home values ($512,667 in McKinney, and $514,490 in Allen).
McKinney's affordability has been a hot topic in 2025 after Motley Fool Money ranked the suburb the No. 1 most affordable U.S. city in its own analysis. The city will only become more popular after its $1.3 billion mixed-use development is completed within the next decade.
The two other DFW neighbors that ranked among the most affordable and fast-growing cities list are Lewisville (No. 8) and Denton (No. 19).
Six more Texas cities earned spots in the report: the Houston suburbs of League City (No. 7) and Pearland (No. 11); Austin (No. 35) and its neighbor Round Rock (No. 10); the Rio Grande Valley city of Edinburg (No. 43); and Central Texas city Killeen (No. 49).