Which States Were People Moving To In 2019?

Stuffed Potato: Which States Gained and Lost The Most Residents Due to Moving?

Which states had the biggest net gains and losses of residents?

Florida was indeed the top destination, but like all major destinations, it lost many residents as well. According to our net data, states like Idaho, New Mexico, and Maine all registered at least 35% more people moving into them compared to people leaving them. Close behind are Arizona and South Dakota, where net gains were at roughly 25%.

On the opposite side of the spectrum is West Virginia followed by, curiously enough, some of the wealthiest states in the country: New York (-18%), Connecticut (-18%), and Illinois, California and New Jersey (all at -17%).

So what's up with that? Dr. Wendy Parson, a PhD from the University of California San Diego and Sociologist at Varsity Tutors, suggests that people shifting to Florida or the Carolinas from California or the Tri-state area might be following the "snowbird" patterns of their elders. In other words, they want to set-up a house where their parents retired years ago.

Americans seem to be turning towards smaller cities when seeking out a new place to live.

One way to think of it is as people live longer, their grown children will often question their lifestyle (e.g., high taxes, climate, overcrowding) and weigh the merits of early retirement. These empty-nesters make choices to scale down, be closer to their ageing parents or college-age children who have already relocated.

We've packed these insights into a handy interactive map. Check above to see how your state fared.

South by Southwest? Cities People Moved to and From the Most in 2019

On the city level, a different pattern emerges. It's actually the cities that are often romanticized in movies and music and that are often associated with financial success which all had more people moving out of them than into them!

Why? Whether due to the high cost of living, lofty tax rates, or overpopulation, New York City, San Francisco, Chicago, and Los Angeles all find themselves having lost more residents than they gained in 2019.

Smaller cities, often those in southern states, saw big net gains. Mesa and Scottsdale in Arizona and Sarasota in Florida had 50% more people moving in than moving out. Gains.

One explanation for patterns seen in the flows between cities, Parson suggests, is that many former "seekers" - people who moved to cities that were glamorised by films or the desire to strike it big - are often disillusioned and return to places where new opportunity lands them, whether it be a new partner (maybe another disenchanted seeker) or a new job.

The prevailing belief that raising children in a small town is a more desirable, safer alternative to larger cities also plays a part. Affordable, suitable housing and better lifestyles for families exist in smaller towns which have bigger homes, outdoor activities for kids and perceived better schools.

The stress of remaining in a city where one does not have roots, obligations of hometown family members, or being a newly single parent who needs help with child care might send seekers back to their small towns... or to new ones where they can remain at a more familiar pace.

Is It 'Better Homes' or 'New Jobs'? Why Americans Said They Moved in 2019

People are leaving New York City, arriving in Durham, North Carolina, and relocating within Oregon. But what exactly has driven Americans in their moves in 2019?

According to the US Census Bureau, namely their Geographic Mobility series, the most common reason to move in 2019 was for a new or better home. A solid 17% of all people moving reported this. Roughly 1 in 8 (12%) of Americans moved for a new job, while an additional 11% moved to establish their own households.

While a few of the top 10 reasons for moving are veiled by the "other" categorization, it's worth pointing out that 6.7% of all people moving in America moved specifically for cheaper housing. A similar proportion - 6.3% - made a move as a result of becoming homeowners.

A recent study of motivations for moving published by Porch - a home services platform - suggests that employment-related reasons were three times more likely to be a factor for people moving out-of-state. As many as 47% of out-of-state moves were motivated by work, compared to 16% of moves within state, where work played a part.

Housing reasons, on the contrary, had a smaller role to play in moves across state lines. While 47% of moves within-state were housing-related, it was a factor in only 14% of moves into a different state.

On a Summer Weekend: What Time Do People Most Often Move?

If it's possible to sum up when people in the United States moved homes in 2019 in one short sentence, it would go something like, "On a Saturday in the summer".

Those who rent are four times more likely to move than homeowners.

Not only was Saturday a runaway winner among days of the week, with more than 1 in 5 (21%) of moves taking place on that day, but it was the most popular moving day in 40 states! Exceptions to the rule are states like Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana and Nevada, where more people preferred to get a jump on the weekend by moving on a Friday.

Just as much as Americans like to move on the weekend, most of us prefer to move in the summer. Whether due to better weather, more free time, or longer daylight hours, more than 1 in 3 moves in 2019 took place in June, July, or August.

Take this as a lesson: book your movers early.

Despite January and early months of the year having a strong association with changes and new beginnings, this hardly translates to moving into new homes. In fact, less than 5% of moves took place in January, according to our data. Holiday-heavy December, unsurprisingly, was the least popular month to move home.

The only states where the most common month to move home was not in the summer were Iowa (September), Nebraska (October), Mississippi and West Virginia (both May).