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Escape to Freedom States

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Last year, 26.5 million Americans decided to move to a new home. Many chose to move to Super States like Florida, South Carolina, and Texas, where politicians treat residents like more than a piggy bank. Terry Collins reports at USA Today:

Pew Research says 26.5 million people moved from one home in the U.S. to another between March 2020 and March 2021–about 800,000 fewer moves than in the same time span between 2019 and 2020 — based on the most current data available from the Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey.

And many of them migrated to the South, according to studies conducted by national moving and housing experts.

Here’s where folks are moving, and why.

Most Americans, headed south, with South Carolina, West Virginia, Florida, Alabama and Tennessee among the most popular destinations, according to a recent study by United Van Lines.

North American Van Lines reported similar findings but included Arizona near the top of its list.

However, Vermont, followed by South Dakota, were the most popular states to move to, according to United Van Lines’ Annual National Movers Study.

The United Van Lines study found that 32% of those who moved wanted to be closer to family or relocated for a new job or job transfer.

Being closer to family represents “a new trend coming out of the pandemic as priorities and lifestyle choices shift,” the studysaid. Meanwhile,the number of Americans who moved for a new job or job transfer marks “a significant decrease” from 2015 when more than 60% cited a job or transfer as a reason to relocate.

The North American Van Lines report estimated that 20% more Americans moved in 2021 compared to 2020 because ofnew remote work opportunitiesthat “enabled an estimated 14-23 million Americans to relocate.”

In addition to wanting to leave high-density areas to avoid contracting COVID-19, many Americans are moving “due to the transformation of how we’re able to work, with more flexibility to work remote,” said Michael Stoll, a public policy professor and economist at UCLA in a statement about the United Van Lines study.

A recent Dataforce by Sequoia survey of 423 leaders of mainly California-based tech companiesfoundthat more than half will allow their employees to permanently relocate to a new state. And those businesses didn’t plan to adjust salaries to reflect differences in the cost of living or thelabor market .

“Since many – especially tech companies – will allow their employees to work remotely even after the end of the pandemic, we see many people moving away from San Francisco and other big and expensive areas,” said Nadia Evangelou, a senior economist and director of forecasting with the National Association of Realtors (NAR). “Since they can keep their jobs, they move to a more affordable area.”

For instance, Evangelou said, in the San Francisco Bay Area, there are about 500 homes currently listed for sale that a household earning $100,000-$125,000 can afford to buy.

Compared with the number of households that earn that income, there is one affordable listing for every 310 households, she said. However, there is one affordable listing for every 134 households in that income range in Austin, Texas.

“Thus, people in Austin metro area are more likely to become homeowners,” Evangelou said. “With teleworking expected to continue even after the end of the pandemic, we anticipate more people will do the same.”

The studies showing more Americans migrating to the South are also consistent with data compiled by the NAR.

The data shows that most of the areas that experienced migration gains in 2021 were located in the Sun Belt region: Florida, Arizona, Texas, South Carolina and North Carolina, Evangelou said.

Many packed up the moving van to relocate to another community in the same state. Inbound moves within Florida exceeded outbound moves by 34% on average, Evangelou’s research found.

In Texas, inbound moves topped moves out of state by 31%. And inbound moves beat out of state moves on average by 23% in Arizona, 28% in South Carolina, and 25% in North Carolina, according to Evangelou.

“The Sun Belt states are more affordable and generally have lower tax burden and strong job growth,” said Evangelou who plans to release an update next month.

Action Line: Don’t be afraid to move to achieve what you want for your family. If you are serious about escaping politicians who treat you and your business like a piggy bank, it’s time to look for a better America. If you have trouble getting started because inertia is holding you back, I can help. Click here to subscribe to my free Survive & Thrive letter. I help Americans just like you stay motivated to achieve their goals. But only if you’re serious.

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E.J. Smith - Your Survival Guy

E.J. Smith is Founder of YourSurvivalGuy.com, Managing Director at Richard C. Young & Co., Ltd., a Managing Editor of Richardcyoung.com, and Editor-in-Chief of Youngresearch.com. His focus at all times is on preparing clients and readers for “Times Like These.” E.J. graduated from Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, with a B.S. in finance and investments. In 1995, E.J. began his investment career at Fidelity Investments in Boston before joining Richard C. Young & Co., Ltd. in 1998. E.J. has trained at Sig Sauer Academy in Epping, NH. His first drum set was a 5-piece Slingerland with Zildjians. He grew-up worshiping Neil Peart (RIP) of the band Rush, and loves the song Tom Sawyer—the name of his family’s boat, a Grady-White Canyon 306. He grew up in Mattapoisett, MA, an idyllic small town on the water near Cape Cod. He spends time in Newport, RI and Bartlett, NH—both as far away from Wall Street as one could mentally get. The Newport office is on a quiet, tree lined street not far from the harbor and the log cabin in Bartlett, NH, the “Live Free or Die” state, sits on the edge of the White Mountain National Forest. He enjoys spending time in Key West and Paris. Please get in touch with E.J. at ejsmith@yoursurvivalguy.com To sign up for my free monthly Survive & Thrive letter, click here.