Unquestionably, the fastest growing areas of the country are car-dependent ones. If you look at the growth of metro areas with at least 500,000 people from 2010 to 2011, the fastest growing metro areas are the following:
Austin, TX
McAllen, TX
Raleigh, NC
Provo-Orem, UT
Charleston, SC
El Paso, TX
San Antonio, TX
Dallas, TX
Houston, TX
Colorado Springs, CO
Denver, CO
Source:
Wikipedia
This list is striking for several reasons:
[[1) All are generally in pro-business states.
[[2) Texas is generally booming, despite its cities being heavily reliant on cars. [[Even Austin is car dependent and the other major cities have no significant public transportation.)
[[3) The cost of living in these cities is generally low, which is attractive in the current economy.
[[4) On the whole, these places have warm climates.
[[5) None of these areas are "elite" cities, but they generally do have an educated work force.