WASHINGTON (October 28, 2009)--Many college graduates are choosing to live in urban, high-tech centers, fueling a brain gain in such states as Texas California and North Carolina.

But census data show brain drains in metro areas with high rates of foreclosures, less tech-based economies or increasing unemployment, which are experiencing declines or slower rates of growth in residents with a college degree or higher.

Those cities include Cleveland, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Orlando, New Orleans and Detroit.

The report shows Austin; Portland, Oregon; Charlotte and Raleigh, both in North Carolina; and Seattle experienced large jumps in residents with at least a college degree.

Each offers the promise of specialized tech jobs and hip lifestyles.

The top five metro areas with the largest gains in residents earning $65,000 and more were Phoenix, Riverside, Calif., Dallas, Las Vegas and Houston.

Median home values ranged from $68,200 in Odessa, Texas, to $739,700 in San Jose, Calif., the only metro area with a median home value above $700,000.

The data are from the American Community Survey.

The information was collected over three years, from 2006 through 2008, providing a snapshot of every U.S. community with at least 20,000 residents.