About 40 miles north of downtown Dallas lies America's fastest-growing city: Celina, Texas.
In Celina, American flags grace the sidewalks and the sound of country tunes fills its local businesses. Here, shop owners greet their customers by name, while neighbors exchange warm hellos as they ferry their children to and from school in shiny golf carts.
The hallmarks of urban life, like bustling shopping malls with dozens of stores and parking lots, are noticeably absent, and the city only welcomed its first Starbucks in 2022. However, Celina does have one commodity in abundance: newly-built homes.
Movers from all corners of the country are flocking to this once-overlooked city. The latest US Census Bureau figures show a remarkable 26.6% population surge from July 2022 to July 2023, far exceeding the nation's 0.5% growth rate.
In 2010, the city had only 6,028 residents. By 2020, this number increased to 16,739, and by 2023, the population had skyrocketed to 43,317, according to the census.
An analysis of census migration data reveals that most new residents in Collin County, including Celina, come from Texas ZIP codes, as well as California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, and Missouri. A significant number of people also relocate from ZIP codes across Africa, Asia, Central America, and Europe.
Texas has surged to the forefront of domestic migration within the United States. While major cities like Austin, Dallas, and Houston have long spearheaded the state's population growth, smaller, lesser-known areas such as Celina, New Braunfels, and Katy are now taking the lead. Their rising popularity is partly attributed to what they offer that many bigger cities can't: a down-to-earth lifestyle, relatively low costs, and homes ripe for the picking.
"We're growing at about 20% every year," Ryan Tubbs, the mayor of Celina since May 2023, told Business Insider. "It's just astronomical growth when you think about the influx of residents and the number of housing permits. Even so, our vision is to maintain that small-town feel, no matter how big we get."
Celina is capitalizing on a wave of growth sweeping North Texas
Celina's transformation from mainly corn and cotton farmland into a rapidly expanding city dotted with thousands of newly built homes traces back to a developmental wave that has spread across Collin County, including nearby cities including Frisco, Plano, and Prosper.
Their metamorphosis into sprawling suburban or exurban metropolises has been greatly influenced by the ongoing expansion of the North Texas Tollway, which has increased accessibility to previously remote cities.
Think of it like a spider's web: The first 30-mile segment of the Tollway opened to drivers in 1968, connecting downtown Dallas to Interstate 635. By the early 2000s, it had expanded farther north, to US Highway 380 in Frisco. In December, the North Texas Tollway Authority announced plans to extend even further into Prosper and Celina.
With Celina becoming more accessible, numerous new housing developments led by builders like Taylor Morrison, Toll Brothers, and Highland Homes, combined with the rise of remote work, have heightened the area's appeal for both local Texans and transplant renters and homebuyers.
According to the city, from 2010 until June 2024, 15,062 single-family permits have been issued for Celina. Many of those are in brand-new master-planned communities.
Homebuyers have been drawn in by Celina's charming small-town vibe and its array of expansive, modern homes. Bankrate said these tailor-made residential neighborhoods, which are often built on more than 2,500 acres of land and function like mini-cities, can vary in size from 100 to 50,000 homes.
Take Celina's Mustang Lakes neighborhood, built by developer Highland Homes. Residents are treated to an extensive list of perks, including a 12,000-square-foot private amenity center, junior Olympic and resort-style pools, a fitness center, four competition tennis courts, an amphitheater, 18 miles of trails, playgrounds, an event lawn, and 14 lakes.
These developments have become standard for the area.
"These types of communities are all-encompassing," Julissa Casas, a real-estate agent at the JC Porcher Real Estate Group, told BI. "There's a lot of different attractions and something for everybody. You don't necessarily need to go further out of the community, I think that is appealing to people."
The city's real-estate market is booming
The president of Highland Homes, Aaron Graham, told Business Insider that the company began building in Celina in the 2000s, but it was too soon.
Now, the situation has completely flipped.
"We always knew Celina had the potential, but you have to build homes where the market wants to buy, and in 2004 it was too far out of the way," Graham said. "The population growth has been astounding."
Highland Homes, which specializes in luxury homes within master-planned communities, has built several neighborhoods in Celina since 2020. In addition to Mustang Lakes, their projects include Cambridge Crossing, Mosaic, and The Parks at Wilson Creek. Home prices in these developments start in the low $500,000s and reach into the millions.
Graham said that to date, Highland Homes has closed 1,930 home sales in Celina, and by year's end, the total is expected to be closer to 2,100.
The abundance of relatively affordable homes in Celina has attracted numerous homebuyers from the more costly West and East Coasts, according to Casas.
Each month, Celina welcomes an average of 830 newcomers to the area — which wasn't always the case. These transplants often arrive with higher incomes and larger budgets for homebuying.
While Redfin reported the median sale price in Celina in May was $632,030, more expensive than Dallas' $499,900, Casas said people coming from more expensive states still find Celina's prices a bargain.
"There are a lot of people coming from other states like California and New York," Casas, who moved to Celina six years ago herself — albeit from nearby Little Elm, Texas. "They're looking for small-town conservative areas."
Movers are also seeking smaller communities with a variety of events, she explained.
"We have Cajun Fest and the Troubadour Festival," added Casa, referring to one of Texas' largest crawfish boils, featuring live music, vendors, and carnival rides, and a barbecue and country music festival. "They're also talking about putting in a rodeo."
New businesses are moving into the city
With more people living in the city, Celina's economy is also growing as local businesses and services benefit from increased demand.
Tracy Miller, owner of downtown Celina's home-decor shop, Terramania, told BI that sales have steadily increased over the two years since she opened her store.
"People are coming to see what's happening in this town, so our customer base is not just limited to Celina — it's everywhere," Miller said. "We're at that point where we're waiting for an explosion to happen."
Tubbs, the mayor, said the city is constructing a new city hall and expanding its staff to accommodate its growing number of residents.
According to him, Celina is adding approximately 40 to 60 staff members per year, mainly first responders, which brings the total number of city employees to around 350 so far. It's much smaller than Dallas — which had about 15,300 employees as of 2022, according to its city hall — but its growth is notable.
"We definitely pride ourselves on public safety," Tubbs said. "Between public works, fire, and police, these departments account for the majority of our new hires among city staff."
The city is changing but is holding onto its values
The influx of new residents from higher cost-of-living states like California, combined with Celina's higher-than-average median household income — $142,643 as of 2022 Census data, compared to the national average of $74,580 during the same time period — has driven a demand for luxury amenities.
Centurion American Development Group is building the 1876 Country Club, named for the year the Texas Constitution was adopted, in Celina's Legacy Hills housing development. The membership-only facility will feature an 18-hole golf course, tennis and pickleball courts, and a fitness center.
The golf course is scheduled to open in the summer of 2025, and the clubhouse will follow in the summer of 2026. It will be open to members from various housing developments and communities throughout Celina.
"Everyone is moving to this area," Sandy Lewis, the club's director of sales, operations and membership, told BI. "This town doesn't have a fully private club yet, so it is primed and ready to welcome a club offering all age ranges and lifestyles, from social to golf. It's a great way to kick off in a town that is just beginning."
Despite the ongoing changes in Celina, the community spirit remains strong.
This became particularly evident following rainstorms that began in April, leading to a federal disaster declaration in June for several counties, including Dallas and Collin County in Texas.
In May, Celina, which was directly in the path of a tornado, saw six homes destroyed beyond repair and widespread damage, the WFAA news station reported.
In response, residents banded together, forming volunteer groups and providing prayers and mutual support. Many pitched in by clearing debris from homes, offering shelter, and even assisting with tasks like picking up diapers or pet food for those in need.
There is no official count on the number of residents who took part in volunteer efforts. However, Joe Monaco, director of marketing and communications for the city of Celina, told BI that there were "countless volunteers who came out."
Casas, who also volunteered for the storm relief efforts, said that the sense of camaraderie is what makes Celina such a great place to live.
"In Celina, everyone is there for each other," she said. "We get a lot of volunteers, and the city does a great job of organizing. That's what I love about the city — it is growing, but it still has a small-town community feel."