In 2022, Americans continued the trend of moving to areas with lower population density for reasons ranging from family to career changes, according to a study by United Van Lines that examined state-to-state migration patterns. Knowing where people are moving can help insurance agents and brokers provide advice on their clients' insurance needs, whether they're going to become homeowners or renters. Housing market booms can also signal where construction companies, and their vast insurance needs, are seeing the most demand. According to Michael A. Stoll, economist and professor in the Department of Public Policy at the University of California, Los Angeles, the study shows that Americans are "now moving from bigger to smaller cities, mostly in the South, some in the West, but even an increase of migration to the Northeast, which has not been typical. We're also seeing younger millennials migrating to vibrant, metropolitan economies, like Washington, D.C. and Portland, Oregon." Looking at demographic data, baby boomers and Gen Xers accounted for the most moves in 2022. Although retirement is driving migration into several states, only 20.39% of people that moved cited it as the primary reason, according to United Van Lines. Most people who moved in this past year did so for a new job or company transfer, which accounted for slightly more than 33% of moves. However, job-related relocations have been on the decline during the past five years, United Van Lines reported. In 2018, nearly half (47.6%) of moves were driven by a career change. During that same period, more people started moving to be closer to family, the study found. In 2018, family was cited as the primary reason for around 24% of moves. It now accounts for nearly one-third of relocations, making it the second most common reason cited in 2022. The above slideshow details the 10 states that saw the highest percentage of inbound moves during 2022 as well as the top reason why Americans migrated to that state, according to United Van Line's study. Related: |

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