Delaware Nosedives In U-Haul’s Where Are People Moving 2019 Report

Florida welcomed more than sunshine and tourists in 2019. It greeted the largest number of U-Haul® moving trucks entering its borders versus exiting them, establishing a new No. 1 growth state for the first time in four years.

Florida, which ranked second to Texas from 2016-18, bested the Lone Star State for growth this past year, according to U-Haul data analyzing U.S. migration trends for 2019.

Texas inched back one spot to No. 2 while continuing its strong run of procuring do-it-yourself movers. North Carolina, South Carolina and Washington round out the top five growth states for 2019.

California ranked 49th, and Illinois was 50th for the fourth time in five years, pacing the out-migration states with the largest net losses of U-Haul trucks crossing their borders.

Growth States are calculated by the net gain of one-way U-Haul trucks entering a state versus leaving that state during a calendar year. Migration trends data is compiled from more than 2 million one-way U-Haul truck-sharing transactions that occur annually.

Although U-Haul migration trends do not correlate directly to population or economic growth, the Company’s growth data is an effective gauge of how well cities and states are attracting and maintaining residents.

“Florida has been showing signs of growth for a decade,” said Miguel Caminos, U-Haul Company of Orlando president. “Central Florida is really booming. I can’t think of any major suburb where there aren’t home developments or new shopping centers being built.

“There’s an expectation of comfort for people moving here. They know there are jobs. Plus, there are tons of attractions, and our state is family-friendly. The weather is perfect, and no matter where you live, you’re less than an hour from the beach.”

Florida arrivals of one-way U-Haul trucks increased 1% while departures were down 1% compared to the state’s 2018 numbers. Arrivals accounted for 50.6% of all one-way U-Haul traffic in the state.

Kissimmee, Ocala, West Palm Beach, Port Saint Lucie and the Bradenton-Sarasota corridor lead Florida’s gains. Boca Raton, Ft. Lauderdale, Pensacola, Miami and St. Petersburg are among the other notable cities to see a net increase of U-Haul trucks.

Alabama was the biggest year-over-year climber in the rankings, surging 36 spots to No. 6. Maryland took the largest tumble, backsliding 39 spots to No. 45. Utah and Vermont, both top-10 growth states in 2018, maintained their attractive status in 2019.

Delaware fell to the 21st spot on the list, down 10 spots from 2018’s number 11.

“I’m not surprised Florida is the No. 1 growth state, even after the hurricanes (in 2019),” added Cal Conner, U-Haul Company of Eastern Florida president. “We’re Floridians – we don’t leave. Our communities stick together. We banded together and U-Haul gave free self-storage to affected residents. Our neighbors are our family.”

* Previous year rankings in parentheses. Washington, D.C. is its own U-Haul market and is listed among growth states for migration trends purposes. Hawaii is not included since state-to-state truck transactions are not applicable.

Source: U-Haul