Survey: Dallas Tops the List of Most Desirable Corporate Site Relocations
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Dallas is leading the nation in desirability, at least in the eyes of corporate scouts tasked with considering headquarters relocation.
An annual survey of corporate site selectors conducted by Site Selection Magazine recently found that Dallas was the top city of choice in which to set up shop. Respondents were asked to list three cities they would put on a short list if they were running a company and had to relocate headquarters. The top five picks were:
- Dallas, TX
- Charlotte, NC
- Atlanta, GA
- Nashville, TN
- Raleigh, NC
“This distinction should come as no surprise — Dallas has been on an economic winning streak in recent years and shows no signs of slowing down heading into 2025,” said Mayor Eric Johnson in a press release about the survey.
Lucky for prospective resident companies, there’s plenty of office space in and around Dallas. CommercialEdge put the metro area’s vacancy rate at 23.9% in its December 2024 office market report, crediting new supply levels with increasing the stock of available square footage.
One of the biggest notches in Big D’s belt is the upcoming Texas Stock Exchange (TXSE), which is currently searching for office space in the Central Business District, as previously reported by CandysDirt.com. The launch of the exchange will mark a significant milestone for the city and D-FW as a whole as economic indicators continue to show the Metroplex outperforming state and national averages, per the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
“Texas has rightly earned its reputation as the ideal state to do business, and this recognition reinforces Dallas as the best city not just in Texas, but in the entire nation for businesses,” Johnson said.
D-FW lagged behind Texas and the United States in terms of payroll before the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the metro shot ahead of both during the recovery. For its part, the Lone Star State has been clocking stronger job growth metrics than the national measure since before the pandemic. State officials, like Gov. Greg Abbott, have credited the state’s economic power to low taxes, a business-friendly regulatory environment, and a well-trained workforce.
“Texas stands as a model for the nation: jobs are growing here, families are growing here, and opportunity is growing here,” Abbott said back in October 2024 when the state logged new record high job figures. “By unleashing the power of entrepreneurs and innovators and training Texans for high-demand, good-paying jobs, Texas will long remain the best state for job creation in the nation.”
Other Southern States Challenge the Lone Star State’s Standing
Although Texas has been on a hot streak, it slipped in this most recent site selector survey. Last year, Texas clocked the most cities listed by respondents. It came in fourth this time, tying with Tennessee. Georgia came in first, followed by North Carolina and South Carolina.
“There’s more competition now than we had yesterday and last year, and the year before that,” said Ron Starner, a Site Selection Magazine editor and Conway Data Inc. executive vice president, speaking with Dallas Business Journal.
“The message to anyone working in economic development in Texas right now is lace up your bootstraps because it’s only going to get more competitive out there,” he added.
