If the Bronx’s coronation as America’s fastest growing city seemed too good to be true, it was.

On April 2, U-Haul released its 2009 report showing that 17 percent more rental trucks had been turned in than checked out at the 20 U-Haul centers in the Bronx — far surpassing the rest of the nation’s cities.  Demographers responded with disbelief.

“It’s completely crazy,” said Andrew A. Beveridge, a sociologist at Queens College. “There’s no way the Bronx is going to be a high-growth area.”

U-Haul has rescinded its April 2 report that said the Bronx was America's fastest growing city. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergal, file)

After the Ink requested Bronx-specific data on Monday, U-Haul realized its official report was incorrect. The new information shows, instead, that a staggering 20.8 percent more rental trucks left the Bronx than entered it, most often bound for Brooklyn, Queens and Philadelphia, and up from 14.5 percent the year before.

This brought the U-Haul trend report more in line with the U.S. Census Bureau, which estimated that 13,596 more people moved out of the Bronx than moved in from July 2008 to July 2009.

Just like that, the Bronx unceremoniously plunged off U-Haul’s top 25 list while Manhattan—with only three U-Haul centers—leapt up to third place.

So what is America’s new growth capital? Santa Monica, Calif.