Who loves the sun? More Americans than ever, according to U-Haul. In its latest moving survey, the moving giant said Florida had beaten out Texas as the No. 1 moving destination in America, The Lone Star State had held the top ranking for at least four years.
“Florida has been showing signs of growth for a decade,” said Miguel Caminos, U-Haul Company of Orlando president, in a statement. “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. He continued: “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.”
The news coincides with new Census data showing that as of July 1, 2019, Florida remained the third most populous state, having moved ahead of New York in 2014. The Sunshine State’s population grew by 1.1% over the past year, more than twice the U.S. average and ninth highest among all states plus D.C., according to Indeed.com economist Jed Kolko.He continued: “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.”
Kissimmee, Ocala, West Palm Beach, Port Saint Lucie and the Bradenton-Sarasota corridor led Florida’s gains, U-Haul said. Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale, Pensacola, Miami and St. Petersburg were among the other notable cities to see a net increase of U-Haul trucks. 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.
