Texas and Florida led the nation in residential in-migration for the third year in a row in 2023, according to U-Haul’s annual Growth Index.
Fellow Sun Belt states North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee round out the top five states for growth, while Idaho, Washington state, Arizona, Colorado and Virginia fill in the top 10.
California posted the largest net loss for the fourth year in a row, followed by Massachusetts, Illinois and New Jersey.
U-Haul calculates growth in each state by looking at the net gain or loss of one-way equipment transactions from customers in a calendar year. The company’s proprietary growth index is compiled from the over 2.5 million one-way truck, trailer and U-box moving container transactions that occur annually in the United States and Canada.
While Texas takes the top spot in state rankings, Florida metropolitan areas have seen the most growth, according to U-Haul’s city rankings. Palm Bay-Melbourne and Ocala, Florida, took the top two spots, followed by Charleston-North Charleston in South Carolina, Sarasota-Bradenton in Florida, and Austin, Texas, taking the fifth spot.
College Station-Bryan in Texas; Charlotte, North Carolina; Huntsville, Alabama; Dallas, Texas; and Myrtle Beach-North Myrtle Beach in South Carolina took the remaining spots this year.