Zero Hedge links to a U-Haul study which looks at the roughly 2 million one way interstate rentals they made in 2022. Each year they publish this information which is a decent indication of where people are moving to and from.
Texas is the No. 1 growth state for the second consecutive year and the fifth time since 2016. Florida, which ranks second, has been a top-three growth state seven years in a row.
South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee, Arizona, Georgia, Ohio and Idaho round out the top 10 growth states. Virginia and Alabama are the biggest risers, climbing 26 spots from their respective 2021 rankings. New York, Massachusetts, Michigan, Illinois and California are the bottom five states for growth in 2022.
In that last sentence, read “bottom states for growth” as “negative growth” meaning losing households moving elsewhere. I believe the U-Haul index is a purer measure of Americans “voting with their feet” than the numbers released by the moving van companies like United.
Most of those renting trucks pay for their own moves. A substantial proportion of those using a moving company have their move paid for by an employer. Van moves reflects the employer’s choice of destination more so than that of the employee.
