HireAHelper Migration Study Reveals 2021 US Moving Trends During Another Year Disrupted by COVID-19

January 24, 2022 at 08:31 AM EST

Population at The Villages booms; The Big Apple is back; Arkansas is the place to be; And was 2021 the Year of The Great Relocation?

The popular online marketplace for finding, comparing and booking moving transportation and services, HireAHelper, a Porch Group PRCH company, today announced the findings of its fourth annual U.S. migration study, examining over 90,000 moving jobs booked in the United States in 2021, identifying where the biggest swings in population have occurred, and helping to explain how the pandemic has impacted work, money and family life in the United States over the last year.

“This has been an extraordinary year with a lot going on politically, socially and economically, and it’s fascinating to see the trendlines that large volumes of moving data can reveal about people’s behavior during this time,” said Miranda Marquit, Chief Data Analyst at HireAHelper. “This year’s findings tell the story of how the pandemic has forced people to move for financial reasons, or for family or work reasons - or in some cases, not to work at all.”

The migration study revealed several interesting findings. Among the most noteworthy was the massive gain in moves to New York City. For the first time since HireAHelper began publishing its annual study, more people had moved into New York City than out - and not just by a fraction. In 2021, 86% more people moved to NYC than left.

Meanwhile, The Villages, the age-restricted community in Sumter County, Florida, saw the largest net gain among U.S. cities as it had three times more people move in than out. And Arkansas had 44% more people move in than out - the highest percentage of all states.

The Great Resignation also revealed itself in the study as 19% of Americans who moved in 2021 blame the pandemic for making them reassess their priorities and quit their job.

The study surfaced other interesting insights, including:

COVID-related Findings

Between 17% and 21% of Americans who moved in 2021 said they moved due to COVID-19, according to 4,500 customers HireAHelper surveyed in 2021
37% of COVID-related moves were people starting to work remotely
As many as 35% reported moving due to buying (12%) or selling a home (23%) in an advantageous market due to the pandemic
One in five (20%) people who moved because of COVID did so because they couldn’t afford their housing

Key Moving Trends

Only one in 12 (8%) Americans moved in 2021, the lowest percentage on record, according to the U.S. Census Bureau
17% of Americans that moved went to a different state, the highest percentage since 2015
In absolute terms, Florida (5.8%), Texas (4.8%), and California (3.2%) saw the greatest share of all moves that took place in 2021
New Jersey (-54%) and California (-49%) had the highest ratio of people leaving versus moving in
68% more people left San Jose, CA than moved in, the biggest net loss in the country

How was the 2021-22 Moving Migration study conducted?

HireAHelper's 2021-22 Migration Study analyzed over 90,000 local and long-distance moving data in the U.S. booked in 2021 through HireAHelper.com and its partner sites, such as SimpleMovingLabor.

Additional data sources included:

Migration/Geographic Mobility Data series by the U.S. Census Bureau
U.S. Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey and its Annual Social and Economic Supplements for 2021
HireAHelper customer surveys carried out in August 2021 (2,404 respondents) and December 2021 (2,138 respondents)

To access the study and all of its findings, please visit: https://www.hireahelper.com/moving-statistics/migration-report/

About HireAHelper

HireAHelper, part of the Porch Group collection of home improvement SAAS and consumer platforms, provides an online moving marketplace where consumers can instantly compare real-time quotes and availability from local movers to book a range of moving services, from Full-Service movers to hourly moving labor. Since 2007, HireAHelper has spearheaded the Hybrid™ Moving phenomenon, an alternative moving approach that blends the use of moving labor with do-it-yourself transportation, resulting in dramatic cost savings for consumers. For more information visit www.HireAHelper.com.