Hamilton 8th most popular destination for 1-way U-Haul trips

The city jumped five spots from 2013 to become the eighth most popular destination for those heading here in a U-Haul.

In a release, the company credited an emerging downtown, affordable housing and more than 2,000 condos in development as reasons for the change.

"The fact that Hamilton has climbed in the rankings speaks directly to an ongoing influx of new residents," said Mayor Fred Eisenberger in the U-Haul article.

U-Haul says the migration trend doesn't correlate directly to a city's population, but it does show how well it is attracting new residents.

Keanin Loomis, Hamilton Chamber of Commerce president, says the data shows that "Canada's best kept secret has gotten out."

If that's true, it's not a moment too soon. The last Statistics Canada numbers showed the city is lagging behind its neighbours in population growth.

From 2006 to 2011, Hamilton's population grew 3.1 per cent to 519,949. In 2006, it was 504,559. That's well behind the growth rate of Burlington (6.9 per cent), Toronto (9.2) and Brantford (8.7).

But since then, city officials say, Hamilton has surpassed $1 billion in building permits each year, as well as experienced a high amount of housing development.