Real estate website RENTCafé analyzed the 2000 U.S. Census and the 2016 American Community Survey to identify changes in key metrics for 11,000 U.S. ZIP codes and produced a list of America's top 10 most gentrified areas. The winner was downtown Los Angeles; runners-up include trendy neighborhoods in Washington, D.C., Fort Worth, Houston, Philadelphia, and New York City. To assess gentrification, researchers considered significant increases in median home value and median household income that long-time residents had to contend with, as well as an influx of newcomers holding a bachelor's degree or higher. "We ranked the ZIP codes on all three scales and created an average ranking to determine which areas experienced gentrification from 2000 to 2016," the researchers said. The study focused only on ZIP codes that had more than 2,000 occupied housing units in both 2000 and 2016. All dollar amounts were adjusted for inflation to 2018 dollars using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Consumer Price Index Inflation Calculator. Of the top 20 ZIP codes deemed most gentrified, here are the top 10:
Los Angeles, California
ZIP code: 90014
Home value change: 707%
Household income change: 95%
Higher education change: 857%

Washington, District of Columbia
ZIP code: 20001
Home value change: 207%
Household income change: 163%
Higher education change: 212% Cities
7:55 PM ET, Tue, 15 Nov 2016 | 01:13

Houston, Texas — ZIP code: 77003
Home value change: 284%
Household income change: 71%
Higher education change: 443%

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania — ZIP code: 19123
Home value change: 203%
Household income change: 95%
Higher education change: 230%

New York, New York — ZIP code: 10039
Home value change: 356%
Household income change: 32%
Higher education change: 168%

Location alone won't determine if your home is a great investment, but this will
9:20 AM ET, Tue, 21 March 2017 | 01:05

Fort Worth, Texas — ZIP code: 76102
Home value change: 323%
Household income change: 103%
Higher education change: 122%

Brooklyn, New York — ZIP code: 11211
Home value change: 167%
Household income change: 79%
Higher education change: 95%

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania — ZIP code: 19146
Home value change: 404%
Household income change: 51%
Higher education change: 106%

How much more it costs to own vs. Rent in Your State

Brooklyn, New York (ZIP 11222): home value change 116%; household income change 56%; higher education change 97%.
Brooklyn, New York (ZIP 11216): home value change 194%; household income change 48%; higher education change 149%.

Although gentrification is changing most major cities, "the really spectacular cases seem to be limited to relatively few," the study notes. More than half of the top 10 ZIP codes are located on the East Coast and are concentrated in a handful of popular cities. Overall, the data show that the average home value in 2016 for the top 20 most gentrified ZIP codes was $446,730, with an average increase of at least 224% since 2000.

"This happened amidst a wave of supply growth: 19 of the top 20 gentrified ZIP codes experienced increases in the number of households between 2000 and 2016."

Median household income in the Washington, D.C., ZIP code 20001 grew 163%, from $37,000 in 2000 to almost $97,000 in 2016. Still, it's worth noting that in LA's 90014 ZIP code most residents continue to live under the poverty line: despite 95% income growth driven by well-educated, high-earning newcomers, the median household income in 2016 was only $24,670. Overall, researchers conclude that gentrification in popular urban areas remains a major issue and could continue to displace long-time residents.