San Francisco, Jersey City, Manhattan, Philadelphia and Boston saw the sharpest spikes in lease applications from the youngest generation of adults—Gen Z—with increases of up to 101% in the past year, according to RentCafe.

The only generation to record an increase in renting activity in the past year, up by 21% overall, Gen Z is playing a big role in the urban revival. Currently representing over a quarter of lease applications nationwide, Zoomers are swarming large urban hubs that promise job opportunities, bringing new life into cities that were once considered doomed due to the pandemic.

Zoomers are becoming a sizable presence in some of the nation's largest cities: they account for more than one quarter of active renters in the past year in San Diego, Los Angeles, Manhattan and Philadelphia—all with a population of over one million. Likewise, according to Census data, 13 of the 20 trendiest cities for Gen Zers are large cities with populations of more than 250,000.