The U.S. Census estimates Texas as the Only Sunbelt State with Substantial Population Gains

Texas has Dallas and Houston ranked first and second among metros with the most numerical gains. Austin and San Antonio are also in the top 20 list, and Texas looks to gain up to four House seats after the 2010 census.

Battered by the recession, more older Americans are staying put in traditional big cities to hold onto jobs, creating slowdowns in most population growth areas at once-popular retirement destinations widely found in the South and West, except for Texas.

Read more at the Census Bureau:census.gov

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Further demonstrating Texas's strength despite the national recession:

1. Texas banks increased their lending levels in 2009, with a cumulative $247.1 billion in loans sent out from the state’s 629 banks, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FIDC).

2. The Brookings Institute which is tracking the economic recession and recovery in America’s 100 largest metropolitan areas, highlights Texas as the lone star in the nation. download the report.

The Brookings Institution is a nonprofit public policy organization based in Washington, DC.and is consistently ranked as the most influential, most quoted and most trusted think tank.

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This is good news for the Texas Coast markets as the majority of buyers and renters are from the Texas Metro Areas.

Boomers are staying put, close to where the jobs – or at least the potential for them – are instead of moving to the Sunbelt, according to U.S. Census figures.

The census shows that the growth of traditional retirement destinations slipped from 3.1 percent between 2000 and 2007 to 1.7 percent between 2007 and 2009, even though significant numbers of baby boomers passed age 60 during those years.

Las Vegas, Orlando, Phoenix, Atlanta, and Raleigh, N.C., all lost population in 2009, while New York, Los Angeles, Boston, and Chicago gained population. Cleveland and Philadelphia decreased in population.

One exception was Texas, a Sunbelt state that saw substantial gains due to a stronger labor market and immigrant growth. For the second year in a row, Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston ranked first and second among metros with the most numerical gains, each adding more than 140,000 people.

Texas, which also had Austin and San Antonio in the top 20 list, stands to gain up to four House seats after the 2010 census.

Baby-boomers spark tourism boom. Senior citizens make up a lucrative and fast-growing opportunity in the tourism industry, with deep pockets, disposable income and free time. But just don't mention their age.