Vermont a Top Destination for United Van Lines and U-Haul Customers
Vermont again ranked number one for in-bound moves for United Van Lines in its 45th Annual National Migration Study, and moved up in rankings in a similar report by U-Haul of its customers.
The annual United Van Lines Movers Study tracks the company’s exclusive data of state-to-state migration patterns for its customers, which trends toward wealthier movers. According to the company, its customers were on the move to lower-density areas and to be closer to their families throughout last year.
Vermont ranked as the state with the highest percentage of inbound migration (74%) with United Van Lines. In addition, Burlington ranked 17 in the top 25 metropolitan statistical areas.
Topping the list of outbound locations was New Jersey (71%). The other top in-bound states were South Dakota (69%), South Carolina (63%), West Virginia (63%) and Florida (62%). Meanwhile, states like Illinois (67%), New York (63%), Connecticut (60%) and California (59%) ranked among states with the largest exoduses.
United’s survey results indicated 31.8% of Americans who moved did so in order to be closer to family – a new trend coming out of the pandemic as priorities and lifestyle choices shift – and 32.5% of Americans moved for a new job or job transfer, a decrease from previous years.
The top reason for moving into Vermont was for a job (43%), and of those the top income was $150,000 or more (46%).
“This new data from United Van Lines is indicative of COVID-19’s impact on domestic migration patterns, with 2021 bringing an acceleration of moves to smaller, mid-sized towns and cities,” Michael A. Stoll, economist and professor in the Department of Public Policy at the University of California, Los Angeles, said. “We’re seeing this not only occur because of Americans’ desire to leave high density areas due to risk of infection, but also due to the transformation of how we’re able to work, with more flexibility to work remote.”
In the survey by U-Haul, southern states, led by Texas, were the top locations for its do-it-yourself movers. However, Vermont moved up to number 12 from 26 in the previous year’s survey, while Maine made the top ten list, jumping from 29 in 2020. After Texas, the other states in the top 5 were Florida, South Carolina and Arizona.
Growth states are calculated by the net gain of one-way U-Haul trucks entering a state versus leaving that state in a calendar year. Migration trends data is compiled from well over 2 million one-way U-Haul truck customer transactions that occur annually.
