Metro Atlanta: 5 Million Strong In 2007 and Growing

According to the ARC (Atlanta Regional Commission), the "core" 10-county (Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry and Rockdale) Atlanta region is home to 4,029,400 people. This is larger than the population of 24 states. And if you include the 10 core counties in addition to the "external" 10 counties (Barrow, Bartow, Carroll, Coweta, Forsyth, Hall, Newton, Paulding, Spalding and Walton), this number increases to 5,077,500.

Highlights from the Atlanta Regional Commission's 2007 Population and Housing Report:

• 71% of all growth since 2000 in the 20-county area occurred within the "core" 10 counties (~600,000 new residents in the "core" 10 versus ~250,000 in the "external" 10)
• 20-county area accounted for almost 70% of Georgia's growth since 2000
• Practically all of the growth in multi-family units occurred in the "core" 10 counties (98.4%)
• Despite recent "citification" trend, the majority of "core" 10-county residents live in unincorporated areas
• Five cities with a 2007 population greater than 10,000 have doubled their population since 2000 - Canton, McDonough, Stockbridge, Villa Rica and Woodstock
• Southern Forsyth is the fastest growing area in the 20 counties.

Source: Atlanta Regional Commission, 2007 Population and Housing Report