May 24, 2026
In 2013, the Texas town of Brownsville was the poorest city in the U.S. Now, it’s the headquarters of SpaceX, a company that’s preparing for what could be the world’s biggest IPO.
“There was a little bit of a shock to the system, but I think it’s stabilized,” Brownsville Mayor John Cowen, whose family has lived in the town for generations, told Bloomberg.
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But how good has SpaceX actually been for Brownsville’s residents?
There’s no doubt the rocket company has brought jobs and money to town, but Brownsville is still struggling. In 2024, the town had a poverty rate of 23.7% — significantly better than its 2013 rate of 36% but more than double the U.S. average of 10.6%.
Some Brownsville residents feel as though SpaceX is forcing them out of their own homes, making the area better for transplants but worse for long-term residents.
Here’s who’s winning — and losing — now that SpaceX has come to town.
Real estate industry is booming for sellers
Long-time Brownsville citizens have mixed opinions on SpaceX coming to town. Cowen, for one, is glad for the opportunities that came with SpaceX’s arrival.
“It’s an amazing time for the city of Brownsville to be known as a place for investment, for innovation, for opportunity,” said the mayor. “I think people are, for the most part, very appreciative of them being here, and we’re excited about the growth that we’re seeing.”
Indeed, SpaceX’s arrival has been great for real estate agents and developers who have found themselves suddenly awash with new, wealthy buyers flocking to Brownsville for work — especially after Elon Musk, owner of SpaceX, called for people to move to the city in a 2021 tweet.
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“Like a light switch — that tweet goes out, and I’m getting calls from Oregon, from Washington state, from Northern California,” said local real estate broker Bob Torres.
However, the influx of new homebuyers and renters hasn’t been as kind to low-income Brownsville residents, many of whom are suddenly dealing with rent hikes they can’t afford.
“Everyone’s rent has gone up — my rent is up by $200 a month,” Bekah Hinojosa, a local community organizer who is protesting SpaceX’s expansion, told Bloomberg. “They’re also flipping houses and turning them into Airbnbs.”
House prices have also increased dramatically. In April 2014, the average price for a house in Cameron County — where Brownsville is located — was around $131,000. In April 2026, it was over $281,000 — more than double what it was when SpaceX moved in.
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SpaceX’s money is going toward transplants, not the town itself
To Elon Musk’s credit, he has donated directly to Brownsville. In 2021, he donated $20 million to county schools and $10 million to the city of Brownsville itself. (In comparison, SpaceX has received nearly $40 billion in funding from the federal government over its lifetime.)
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These donations made a real difference, especially to Brownsville’s underfunded school district, but some Brownsville residents have seen more negative than positive impacts from SpaceX moving in.
“The rocket launches are dangerous. They cause our homes to shake. SpaceX has been caught illegally dumping polluted water onto Boca Chica Beach, into our ecosystems,” Hinojosa told ABC News. “The rent is going up. And it’s all associated with, you know, SpaceX coming into this area and colonizing the region.”
As ABC News reports, the SpaceX employees who are moving to Brownsville have reportedly voted to form their own city called Starbase around the SpaceX launch site. And the businesses opening to cater to them, such as pricey cocktail lounges and restaurants, are priced too high for Brownsville residents to benefit.
“To go out to a $300 dinner — that just doesn’t happen,” Torres shared with Bloomberg. “The normal Brownsvillian could not afford to go there.”
SpaceX’s expansion to Brownsville also means locals are frequently cut off from visiting their public beach, Boca Chica.
“It was called a poor man’s beach because you didn’t have to pay anything to go to the beach other than just get in your car, get in your truck, round up the neighbors, round up the cousins, round up the aunts and uncles and let’s go have fun,” said Brownsville resident Rene Medrano. “And to see now the way it is … It’s just disheartening.”
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Kit Pulliam is a DC-based financial journalist with over five years of experience writing, editing, and fact-checking financial content.
