People Are Moving Out of Michigan and Illinois Faster than Ever

In the times of gig economy, and quick job shifting, moving around the country is becoming more frequent, and people will tend to flock where the work is, or away from expensive situations.  

Obviously, those aren’t the only factors, but are possible contributors as to why people are moving out of Michigan and Illinois at near-record numbers. 

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United Van Lines released their annual movers study recently. It shows the states that most Americans are moving from, and into. 

The study, which tracks the company’s exclusive data for their customers’ moving patterns, showed that more people are moving TO Vermont than any other state, with 65% of moves in the state being inbound residents. Nearly 30% of those moves are to be closer to family, while 20% moved just because of a lifestyle change. 

On the other end of the spectrum, New Jersey spent its sixth year at the bottom, with 65% of moves in the state being outbound residents. The top motivation to move out of the Garden State is to retire (which explains why Florida is one of the most “moved-to” states in the country. 

How Many People Moved From Michigan and Illinois?

Right behind New Jersey was Illinois for the most people moving out. Right around 61% of moves in Illinois were people leaving the state. And not far behind them was Michigan, which showed that 58% of the population moves were outbound as well. 

The largest contributor to people moving out of Illinois seems to be for work, as nearly 26% of those moves were for work. But retirement also accounted for a little more than 21% of them as well. 

As for Michigan, 30% of moves out of state were for work, and 26% were because people were moving closer to family. 

“We are continuing to see the trend that Americans are moving to more affordable, lower-density areas across the country, with many heading to southern states. Movers are also becoming more strategic with their planning, as relocation continues to be driven by factors such as the price of housing, regional climates, urban planning, and job growth.” 

Illinois has been on the list as one of the top 10 “Most Moved From” states on this list since 1978, while Michigan has appeared on the list at least a dozen times in that time span as well.

In fact, over the years of this study, with the exception of Vermont, the trend seems to be people moving from northern states, into warmer, southern states. A large contributor to this could also be people retiring. 

The data only covers a few points as to why people are moving. What do you think the REAL reasons might be? Are they right, or are there other reasons maybe?