This is news that ought to surprise no one.
Despite their reputation and despite the stones thrown by some, people are starting to realize that southern states with conservative governance, low regulations, low taxes, and friendly people, are the best place to live.
The top 6 states that people are moving to are all in the heart of Dixie. 7 are in the sunbelt, and the entirety of the top 10 are nowhere near the coastal elites.
This study comes from the National Association of Realtor's in their yearly migration trends report.
Here are a couple of the key finding from the Relators:
46% of respondents' clients had moved to the South this year, while 25% moved to the West, 18% moved to the Midwest, and 11% moved to the Northeast.
REALTORS®' recent clients generally moved to a similar type of area (i.e. from one suburban area to another). However, those moving from central city/urban areas (41%) and resort areas (44%) most often moved to a suburban area.
People are moving out of cities and into the friendly confines of your southern suburbs. America is truly making a comeback.
The states with the biggest net migration are all in the south proper.
Florida: 372,870
Texas: 315,301
North Carolina: 126,712
South Carolina: 91,853
Georgia: 88,325
Tennessee: 76,000
After these southern states sweep the top 6, we move out west in the sunbelt with Arizona at #7, followed by Alabama, Oklahoma, and then Ohio, the only midwestern state in the top 10.
According to the Census Bureau, the South, the nation's most populous region, is the only region to have maintained population growth throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The growth is largely attributed to migration, with 706,266 people added via net domestic migration.
California, the nation's most populous state, was the biggest loser of 2023, with the state shedding 75,423 people.
Tennessee gained nearly the same amount of people that California lost.
Please, Lord, don't tell me all those Californians have moved to Tennessee!
In addition to California, a few other solid blue states, and a couple of conspicuous red states, were the major population losers in 2023.
In 2023, Hawaii (-4,261), Illinois (-32,826), Louisiana (-14,274), New York (-101,984), Oregon (-6,021), Pennsylvania (-10,408), and West Virginia (-3,964) also all saw their populations fall.
According to the poll, people are moving for housing (46%), to be closer to family (26%), and for new jobs (18%). However, work from home numbers increasing means that fewer people have to move for work nowadays. They simply want to keep their jobs and then move where it's affordable to live.
And the south is fitting the bill for hundreds of thousands of Americans.
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