Home>Articles>U-Haul Names Top Growth States of 2019… and Inadvertently Identifies States People are Fleeing

U-Haul Names Top Growth States of 2019… and Inadvertently Identifies States People are Fleeing

Southeast states entice DIY movers yet again

By Katy Grimes, January 21, 2020 5:04 pm

U-Haul Austin, TX. (Photo: myUHaulstory.com)

DIY movers showed again in the 2019 U-Haul state migration index that the top inbound migrations states Americans are moving to are once again in the Southeast quadrant of the country. Florida, Texas, North Carolina, South Carolina, Washington and Alabama ranked Number #1 through #6 as the most favorable states in which to move.

“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,” U-Haul said.

As Chuck DeVore noted in Forbes, “These are states with light state and local tax burdens. Conversely, four of the top five states people are fleeing—Illinois, California, Michigan, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania—feature high taxes (though Michigan’s tax burden falls close to the national average).”

Chuck DeVore was featured in California Globe’s first “Leaving California” series of articles. DeVore is a former California Assemblyman and served from 2004 to 2010. DeVore ran as the Republican candidate for the United States Senate against then-Sen. Barbara Boxer, and lost. Shortly thereafter, in 2011 DeVore, his wife, kids and elderly parents and in-laws moved to Texas.  DeVore has been working for the Texas Public Policy Foundation since, and is Vice President for National Initiatives.

Texas does not have a state income tax, therefore government collects less from each taxpayer, DeVore said. About permitting and government intrusion in Texas, DeVore had an interesting perspective: “It is akin to how during the Cold War in the U.S., unless something was prohibited, it was allowed,” he said. “In the Soviet Union it was the opposite – Unless something was allowed, it was prohibited. That is more like California now.”

It stands to reason that people leave states like California in search of states like Texas, Florida and the Carolinas.

California Globe also interviewed former Californians who moved to Arizona, Idaho, North Carolina, Indiana, Nebraska, and Nevada (X2).

While U-Haul only calculates do-it-yourself movers, DeVore says its annual data usually lines up nicely with federal surveys and other reports. “For instance, U-Haul’s top five in 2019 are projected by the U.S. Census Bureau to be in line to gain six U.S. House seats as the result of the 2020 census and the congressional apportionment that will follow. U-Haul’s bottom five states are estimated to be on track to lose four U.S. House seats.”

U-Haul explained their measurement:

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.”

California Globe wanted to see the cost to rent a one-way U-Haul from Sacramento, CA to Virginia Beach, VA; the cost was astronomical:

The cost for the exact opposite trip – from Virginia Beach to Sacramento – was less than half:

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6 thoughts on “U-Haul Names Top Growth States of 2019… and Inadvertently Identifies States People are Fleeing

  1. It would have meant much more..say, if you had compared the other big mover too…like Hertz/Ryder/and others? Uhaul doesn’t seem to handle the same type customer…looking like single or couples moving out and about….less so it seems are entire families and households full of goods on a single truck? The next loss in California for the past decade? Was it roughly 240,000 people/families moving on up to another state? And, in that article it was also mentioned that the net LOSS in Income to the state of California? Was put at roughly $7 BILLION dollars, perhaps a few more million we COULD call chump change for our Political Leadership?

  2. One does not simply leave California for a prohibition state. Why would one choose to allow one’s tax dollars to be spent locking people up over a plant? Denying sick people medical care if they fail a drug screen, like pain patients and organ transplant patients? Oh, and how is Texas’ super high property tax working for you? No thanks.

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