Is it true that there has been a large migration of Americans to the southern US?
Posted by FirefighterPale6832@reddit | AskAnAmerican | View on Reddit | 435 comments
madogvelkor@reddit
Yes. Despite how people online complain and make fun of the South it has had a large influx of people for the past several decades. It's cheap, there are lots of job there, the weather is generally more enjoyable (since everyone has AC). And 2/3rds of Americans either like or don't care about the more conservative culture.
Humble-End-2535@reddit
It was cheap. And taxes are still low because the government is small. But I grew up in upstate S.C., an area that has been booming for twenty years (at least) and - getting that this is totally anecdotal - the people on the "natives" social media page for the area complain about the cost-of-living increases because of the influx of people.
I live in one of the more expensive parts of the country, but bought my house 30-years-ago, so they'll have to carry me out in a pine box.
draizetrain@reddit
You must be from Greenville. When I go back to visit, it’s crazy how much it’s changed and how expensive it is. It was already getting expensive in 2010. I moved to Spartanburg not long after because I couldn’t afford rent in Greenville anymore.
Humble-End-2535@reddit
Yep! I haven't been back in probably ten years and none of my family is still around, so I may never have reason to return. But I could not believe the growth in the last thirty years.
The resurrection of downtown is great! But they are getting sprawl. When we moved their in 1972 East North St (Old Spartanburg Rd) was two lanes to Pleasantburg (there was a Rose's where - last time I was there - the Fresh Market was). We were in Taylors. Now Greer is like a bedroom community. Mind blown.
draizetrain@reddit
That Fresh Market is still there. Greer has really grown a lot too like you said thanks to the proximity to Greenville. Downtown certainly is nice! But the spraaawl. I didn’t move very far away (ended up in Columbia lol) but what I don’t miss is having to get on I-85 or the highway all the time. And omg. That woodruff road traffic has only gotten exponentially worse.
Humble-End-2535@reddit
I've lived in a bunch of places over the years. I was in Atlanta in the early '90s and while I loved a lot of the things in Atlanta, those feelings were overwhelmed by my loathing of the sprawl.
I think it is a problem with all of the cities that have grown in recent decades - mostly in the sunbelt but also Seattle. The suburban ideal doesn't work so well when a city gets that big. Especially with the predominant Southern loathing of public transit.
I had lived in Baltimore when I was first out of college. A comparative sh!thole. And I lived adjacent to a slum. But I loved how easy it was to get around. I never worried about where something was happening in town, because nothing was far away.
In Atlanta. What time? What neighborhood? Think about which way rush hour traffic was going. Everything was a hassle. Can't imagine what it is like now.
I moved from Atlanta to NYC and, my goodness, there might be 10 million people here, but it has the convenience of a much smaller city. Sold the car. One subway line to get to work in ten minutes. People who have never lived in NYC and criticize it have no clue as to how easy a place it is to live.
draizetrain@reddit
Public transit is my dream, and people ABHOR it!! So there’s not much support or funding. And in Columbia they keep taking away the bus benches to punish homeless people I guess but now the elderly people have to stand and struggle waiting for the bus.
I’m lucky to live in a walkable area, but like you said, even if a place is nice, if you have to drive for EVERYTHING it saps enjoyment.
Atlantas traffic is a clusterfuck. I’ve never been out west so the only worse traffic I’ve seen was in DC. I have family in NYC and can you believe they have a car and never take the subway?! TBF they have considerably more money than I do lol. But part of the charm of NYC (to me) is being able to go everywhere without having to drive. Yeah the subway smells like piss sometimes but oh well
AlfredoAllenPoe@reddit
It's still a lot cheaper than where people are coming from (mainly California, New York, and Illinois)
fr33d0ml0v3r@reddit
Cheaper for the retirees/Yankees but not the locals. They have gotten priced out of most cities in SC. Specially Charleston and its surroundings. Sames goes for Florida. Mobile, AL is also getting more expensive but thanks to the horrendous schools and governance, it keeps non-retiree from moving and thus keeps prices in check.
AlfredoAllenPoe@reddit
I am familiar with the effect that increased demand has on prices, yes.
People move there because it's cheaper than where they live. This increases the demand for housing and goods. Increased demand leads to increased prices.
But these areas are also where the massive wave of new housing supply was built over the last few years. Many of these markets are actually seeing flat or even decreased rents recently because of this new wave of supply.
fr33d0ml0v3r@reddit
I dont disagree with you. I do not know all of SC. I do know that house prices in Charleston County and its surroundings have shot up considerably in the past 10+ years. Where its unaffordable for most people, even northerners at this point.
https://www.redfin.com/county/2442/SC/Charleston-County/housing-market
an_evil_budgie@reddit
My parents sold their house in Hanahan for 2013 for $230k. That house is worth $500k now. I could never afford to return to my hometown.
NIN10DOXD@reddit
Raleigh and Durham natives are now moving further out because of it. It's insanity.
TheYeast1@reddit
Yep, it’s really sad since now the mountains are being slowly deforested for brand new retiree villages. The whole point of the south was everything’s cheaper, but the paycheck is never going to be as fat as it would in places like New York and California. Now the pay sucks, and prices are rising to New York and California standards. Wonder how the economy will be doing when no one’s working the shitty jobs since they can afford grocers anymore or if there’s so many bodies here that’ll never happen. The Midwest is going to be next.
Beneficial_Equal_324@reddit
They move to Baldwin County instead of Mobile.
rileyoneill@reddit
California government employees frequently retire with a six figure pension for life (and not so much anymore, but definitely in the past, people were getting this in their mid 50s) and can often sell their home for way more than they paid for it.
You get $10,000 per month in a pension for life, you can sell your home for $800k (you paid $120k for it back in the 90s). That may not let you move to the most affluent parts of the country, but you can get the best version of almost any lifestyle outside of just small handful of places.
It doesn't matter if the job market is good or bad. Schools? Your kids are already adults. Places like Alabama absolutely have swanky areas where the living standards are great and most locals can't afford to live there. But the retiree with all this money can.
OldEnvironment9@reddit
This is exactly what is happening to my beloved black hills of SD. Tons of California pensioners with way more $ than the locals buying up everything and building houses that are pricing out the lifelong residents. I get that this has happened elsewhere for years, but it’s a huge gut punch for actual South Dakotans right now. These newbies don’t give two shits about their new neighbors or the local schools/counties/cities finances. They got theirs, so leave them alone. It sucks.
BoldBoimlerIsMyHero@reddit
I don’t get the mentality of old people not wanting to support schools because good schools mean good kids which mean good neighborhoods.
Fight_those_bastards@reddit
Because “fuck you, got mine.”
“I don’t have kids in school, why should I pay school taxes?”
“Why are property taxes so high, I’m moving to the middle of nowhere!”
“I moved to an unincorporated community, why do I have to pay extra for the fire department?”
Etc.
My aunt and uncle moved to BFE because “we got 10 acres of land and a house for so cheap, and the property taxes are almost nonexistent!” And then, my uncle got sick. Two hours each way to the nearest hospital, which was understaffed and generally shitty. And he doesn’t want to understand why. In my home state (where he moved from) yeah, property taxes (and property values) are high. And there’s a shitload of world-class hospitals, schools are generally really good, and there’s a ton of subsidized assistance programs for people who need it. Those things cost money.
OldEnvironment9@reddit
Well, most of them relocating here are MAGA, so that pretty much explains it.
rileyoneill@reddit
It has been happening to us here in California for decades. Generally not retired people, but just wealthy people from back east buying a second home in California. Since the late 2000s it has been a lot more global wealth people just buying California real estate, which means our high earning people can't compete with that. You can be some hot shot making $500-$1M per year, but you can't keep up with a Saudi Prince or a Russian Oligarch collecting luxury homes all over the world.
The thing is, if you are a long term California home owner and you have a pension. California is a great place to live your retirement. Your property taxes are fixed to the original purchase price of the home so you can easily be paying like a third or less of what a new home buyer would pay. Our biggest expense isn't taxes, its rent, if you do not have to pay rent or a mortgage whatever they tax out of your pension is still pretty small as a monthly expense. Gasoline is expensive, but if you are not commuting to work every day, its not like you will be using a ton of it, if you buy an EV (which is perfect for most retirees) you won't pay very much.
If you want to spend time in South Dakota, go visit. Hotels and rental homes are pretty cheap.
404-gendernotfound@reddit
I think another consideration for why people from California move out of state is that even if they can afford to live there, their children often can’t. So they move closer to kids and grandkids once they retire.
SBingo@reddit
Charleston is terrible! I grew up going to my aunt’s house on Johns Island when I was a kid. Small town, beautiful. We were the tourists because we came from another part of the state.
Then about ten years ago, we went on a tour and they said we were “locals” because we were from SC! We were so shocked. Had never been called a “local” in my life to Charleston since I’m from a different part of the state.
It’s gotten so bad to get into Johns Island, that my aunt leaves the island to meet us- because it takes forever and a day to get on the island. I always say I miss the Charleston of my childhood. It is gone and it is never coming back.
I remember when they first named Charleston the number one tourist destination in the US. We all thought that was so cool that SC made the list. Now I think it is the worst thing to ever happen to Charleston!
JimNtexas@reddit
The same thing is happening in Austin. As a 'blue dot' the cost of living in Austin has wildly increased, so a lot Austinites are moving to the adjacent counties, which used to be solidly conservative, but are now trending purple.
MrLongWalk@reddit
Nicer things tend to be more expensive, yes.
State_Of_Franklin@reddit
The sticker prices on homes where I live are more expensive than Chicago by a bit. Closer to NY prices. The difference is taxes.
Alternative-Put-3932@reddit
I highly doubt Austin Texas is cheaper than Illinois in general. I can buy a home for 150k or less in Illinois and Chicago is in the 300k range. Property taxes is the only argument here.
AlfredoAllenPoe@reddit
I think you are seriously underestimating how cheap homes in Texas are in addition to the reduced property taxes.
You can get brand new construction in Houston and Texas for around $300K and existing homes are even cheaper
Fappy_as_a_Clam@reddit
Charlottean here: tell them I said "we brought you civilization, you're welcome" in a very smug voice.
TheYeast1@reddit
You brought me a 200% increase of rent and no raise. Guess I’ll do the same to some poor Midwest fucker
Fappy_as_a_Clam@reddit
That's exactly what I did!
When my wife and i moved to Grand Rapids we had each sold properties in Charlotte, and we could have bought a house up here outright.
We became the transplants I hated so much in Charlotte lol
revolutionoverdue@reddit
It’s still relatively cheap compared to the northeast.
Oceanbreeze871@reddit
Climate change will make those moves a mistake. It’s only gonna get hotter and have worse storms
JohnD_s@reddit
That’s hardly southern-specific, though. I’ve lived in the south for twenty years and hot summers are just to be expected. You get used to it pretty quickly.
DowntownRow3@reddit
From up north it seems like you guys are constantly having bad storms and tornadoes. Not to mention hurricanes. Thinking long term I’d never move down there for that reason…same with beach housing.
JohnD_s@reddit
Unless you're on the coast, hurricanes are rarely more than a few bad thunderstorms year. I live roughly six hours north of the coast and have only experienced bad storms from a hurricane one or two times.
Similarly, while tornadoes themselves can occur in your region a few times a year, they generally only impact a small number of homes at a time. And the tornadoes that will actually tear up a brick and mortar home are exceedingly rare. Usually only EF4's and up. I certainly wouldn't say that they are enough of a danger to deter someone from moving.
We have the same attitude about the snow storms we see you guys experience. That and the cold would get old very quickly.
eVilCorporationz@reddit
It's just a different kind of heat in Florida.
AdPsychological790@reddit
I used to think that. Then I moved to Texas. Same humidity, no rain for weeks, but instead of 92 degrees it's 105.
eVilCorporationz@reddit
If you're near the gulf it's about the same, but It doesn't always get as humid in inland Texas. Inland Texas can get humid sometimes, but it's not for months on end like the coastal vicinity. The guy I was responding to is from Huntsville, which is definitely nowhere nearly as hot and humid for as long as Florida, by any means.
AdPsychological790@reddit
I'm in Houston area
eVilCorporationz@reddit
I can't think of a city in the USA with worse weather. The risk from natural disasters alone makes North Dakota sound delightful.
Whole_Ad_4523@reddit
The places people tend to move to aren’t stereotypically “Southern” though, like I know people who moved to Atlanta, Asheville, Austin…
PhilaRambo@reddit
Three southern towns
Whole_Ad_4523@reddit
Right, but I think OP might be thinking Northerners going to the South as being something out of Deliverance, whereas there isn’t any real culture shock involved in moving from Brooklyn to Austin etc. If a lot of folks are moving the Florida panhandle or rural Mississippi I am not aware of it
Dry_Umpire_3694@reddit
They’re moving to rural Georgia
gregandsteve@reddit
You could've stopped at "It's cheap" that's the only reason people move there
apparentlymeme@reddit
Yes, and the locals are sick of it!
Professional-Mix9774@reddit
All of this has to do with housing not keeping up with the population growth. In Dallas, we are making the same mistakes. Not enough housing in the core places where people want to be. It’s great for people who own homes, but sucks for long term growth and sustainability.
NoCountryForOld_Zen@reddit
It's true that Florida's population is growing and that most Florida residents aren't born there. Dunno about the other southern states.
NIN10DOXD@reddit
In North Carolina, all population growth is purely people moving in as the native population isn't having kids at replacement level.
boldjoy0050@reddit
NC is completely overrun with Yankees. It’s ridiculous
OG-BigMilky@reddit
It’s ridiculous that we were still called Yankees.
nowthatswhat@reddit
I’ll stop callin ya one when yaw stop actin like one
DistanceRelevant3899@reddit
What does this even mean?
boldjoy0050@reddit
Rushing people in stores, driving crazy, saying things like “we had better pizza up north”, and not trying to adapt to local culture.
My parents live in a small town in western NC and over the past few years it has been overrun with people from up north who are incredibly rude and insulting to local people.
Carrotstick2121@reddit
dude, enjoy your tomato sauce on a cookie all you want, just don't expect me to like it, too.
boldjoy0050@reddit
The south isn’t known for pizza. What we have instead is delicious fried chicken, biscuits, Cajun food, BBQ, and several other local foods.
The next time I hear someone from up north complain about pizza or how they can’t get their deli sandwich, I’ll ask “how’s the BBQ up there?”
Carrotstick2121@reddit
It's fine, in many places, though far less common of course, and NC should be proud of its focus on good BBQ. The vinegar base isn't my thing, but it for many people, and that's great! The thing is, you can get decent BBQ in the north, but not decent pizza in the south, and for the same reason really - the amount of sugar in everything. Sugar is OK in BBQ sauce but gross in pizza.
osteologation@reddit
Sounds like you gotta up your pizza game. /s But I get you on the other points. I joke that it’s prolly cause we only have 3 months of good weather if we’re lucky that most of us are so impatient.
Hurcules-Mulligan@reddit
I proudly wear that badge. Fuck neoconfederates.
Beneficial_Equal_324@reddit
Yeah, apparently "Yankee" means engaging in healthy behaviors,
hegelianbitch@reddit
"Yankee" is a joke ffs
OG-BigMilky@reddit
It’s not. You know it’s not. I know it’s not. We all know it’s not.
hegelianbitch@reddit
Is humor outlawed in your state?
Hurcules-Mulligan@reddit
Don't make me come down there and burn your shit to the ground.
hegelianbitch@reddit
So.... yes then 😉
Hurcules-Mulligan@reddit
How's memaw? She survive the flood? Did she make it through the wildfires?
What did she do to piss God off so much?
Is papaw out of jail yet?
hegelianbitch@reddit
...wow........
Zumin5771@reddit
Start drinking tea that’s sweet enough to be classified as diabetic water and then we can discuss removing y’all’s Yankee status.
OG-BigMilky@reddit
I lived in NC for 21 years. I’m well acquainted with sweet tea et al. I miss Bojangles.
osteologation@reddit
Sweet. I’m considered a heretic up here because I don’t like unsweetened with lemon.
32carsandcounting@reddit
I went out for dinner a few weeks ago, ordered an unsweetened tea, and I was told that all they have is sweet tea and diet sweet tea. Then tried for a club soda, nope. Guess I’ll take water.
osteologation@reddit
lol I hate when i go to the gas station and there’s like 10 kinds of tea but finding sweet is a chore. I don’t care for any of the fruity ones either.
32carsandcounting@reddit
Same. I prefer club soda/sparkling water over other (non-alcoholic) beverages but no restaurants seem to carry it, and if they do the employees don’t know what I’m talking about. Go into a gas station and they have 10 different flavors of liquid death, including the unflavored still water, but they never have the sparkling water with no flavoring. It’s Florida though, so I typically just grab a tall boy and hit the road. Drive sober get pulled over is our state motto anyways.
gtne91@reddit
"Even before my father's father They called us all rebels As they burned our cornfields And left our cities leveled I can still feel the eyes of those blue-bellied devils Yeah, when I'm walking 'round tonight Through the concrete and metal, hey, hey, hey" -- Tom Petty
NonSupportiveCup@reddit
My gfs, at the time, grandfather called me a carpetbagger. This was during the same first meeting where he legit yelled at my partner to serve me a drink. Like, I am not kidding, "Woman, get your man a drink!"
Rip, David. You odd, sexist, and stubborn potato farmer. I miss your kick-ass fried blue fish. None of your kids can make it because you refused to teach them the way.
ErwinSmithHater@reddit
What are you talking about? You don’t even have an MLB team
SabreDuFoil@reddit
It's because they sold their million dollar house and bought one double the size for 300k in NC.
It's been "make your money in the north, retire in the south" for at least as long as I've lived.
gtne91@reddit
My neighborhood, when I was in SC, was majority NY/NJ transplants.
KobeBeatJesus@reddit
I visited an in law begrudgingly in January. The cost of housing around the greater Charlotte area is nuts.
VagueUsernameHere@reddit
I feel like all my classmates moved to North Carolina after Florida got too expensive for us, and now those same classmates are complaining about how crowded and expensive North Carolina is getting.
RachelRTR@reddit
Need to be in Eastern NC. It's very cheap and not crowded.
OppositeRock4217@reddit
In no state is population having kids at replacement level
PolyglotTV@reddit
What about Utah?
OppositeRock4217@reddit
It’s at 1.85 so still below replacement
LeResist@reddit
I feel like Florida is notoriously a retirement state. Everyone I know who's moved there was like 50+
inmidSeasonForm@reddit
You haven’t been to the right parts. I grew up in FL (4th gen Floridian, btw) and when I go back now, my sleepy retirement-palace hometown is transformed into a hipster paradise, crawling with bearded millennials and laden with brewpubs. Nothing closes until 3 a.m -in a place that for my whole life had rolled up the sidewalks by 9. The kids are there and they’re doing just fine. The few remaining retirees are hanging on for dear life, I suppose.
A little bit up the road, the place where I live now has also grown as people move in from across the country and a once sleepy southern coastal city is grappling with … well, all the things one grapples with when unexpected and largely unwanted growth descends.
LeResist@reddit
Well I'm sure there are young people that move to Florida. But that doesn't negate the fact that a lot of people live there in retirement
No-Feedback-3146@reddit
nope that's was true maybe a decade ago, check stats florida and texas is the states witnessing most of the population growth, but floridas growthh is overall crazy because cities popping up in relatively small distances and can soon be one of the densest states in all of usa. no more retiree state
inmidSeasonForm@reddit
Sure. But I think the regular retirees are getting pushed inland and the coasts are far more youthful than they were 20 years ago. Also far more expensive. The cheap retiree tract homes are now in the interior parts of the state that were previously horse farms, orange groves, etc. Wealthy retirees obviously are a different matter and can go wherever they choose. My hometown, for example, keeps building waterfront high-rise condos to my dismay. Beautiful older homes on the water are torn down and four McMansions built on the same lot that held the one. It’s sad but Florida always sells its beautiful self to the highest bidder.
AdPsychological790@reddit
Lol. Sounds like you're from Broward.
FirefighterPale6832@reddit (OP)
I've heard that the accent in Florida today is heavily influenced by people from New York, New England and the Midwest. In the future, Florida will become a separate enclave.
Hopeless_Ramentic@reddit
Eastern Florida is South New Jersey
Tampa Bay is the Southern Midwest
milee30@reddit
The West coast of Florida used to be Southern Midwest and Canada. They were nice people. Friendly, relaxed.
Unfortunately after Covid, NY and NJ "discovered" the west coast and that influx has not been nice, friendly or relaxed people. They're obnoxious and rude. And appear angry that Florida isn't like NY.
AdPsychological790@reddit
Lol. New Yorkers. The complain Florida isn't like New York, go back for an extended period of time, then come back to Florida forever. With sentiments along the line of "I'll never live in New York again..." Lot of transplants do that. When the first move down, they have nostalgia in the brain. But when the go back to their old city/state, it's like they're looking at it with new eyes. Year round golf and fishing, xmas shopping in flip flops. Can't beat it. You want snow? You visit it, not live in it.
FirefighterPale6832@reddit (OP)
I think only northern Florida remains southern
Hopeless_Ramentic@reddit
Well yeah the panhandle is basically Southern Alabama.
poliver1972@reddit
Having lived in Tallahassee I can assure you Valdosta GA is WAY more southern. A girl moved from Valdosta to Tallahassee when I was in HS and everyone made fun of her accent.
engineer2187@reddit
That’s been true for a long time though. Even in the 80’s Hank Williams released an incredibly politically incorrect song with the verses:
We’d put Florida on the right track, ‘cause we’d take Miami back
That was nearly 40 years ago and was a widely held perspective then.
Dramatic-Blueberry98@reddit
Yep, my parents grew up in Florida though their parents and grandparents are all from Tennessee, Missouri, and Alabama. Anyway, having lived there some time myself and having most of my close relatives still living there, Central Florida is pretty neutral (between Southerner, Northerner, and Hispanic) accent wise.
The Panhandle along with some of the increasingly rarer areas like Lake County are what remains of the Southern influence. Meanwhile, Southern Florida is very non-Southern.
AdFinancial8924@reddit
“Snow birding” is not new. Retirees from New York/ New Jersey/Massachusetts etc spend winters in Florida and summers in their home state. Because taxes and fees are cheaper in Florida they’ll often make their Florida address their permanent residence. You’ll see a lot of Florida license plates in the northeast during the summer.
raft_guide_nerd@reddit
In Florida the further south you go, the further north you go. Northern Florida accents sound like the South. Miami sounds like New York.
Extension_Camel_3844@reddit
I feel like that has always been the case though, just about everyone up North from NJ/NYC to New England retires down in Florida or the Carolina's. I mean, I'm 55, I was visiting my Grandparents in Ocala FL every summer as a child in the 80's and 90's. They were from NJ.
FirefighterPale6832@reddit (OP)
But only retirees go, not young people with their families?
Curmudgy@reddit
I have cousins who moved down there as young adults, back in the 1950s or maybe even the 1940s. Their parents (my aunt and uncle) didn't mive down there till they retired, late 1960s or early 1970s.
Extension_Camel_3844@reddit
Accents don't go away just because you retire? I was only referring to the accents being heard down there regularly. That's not new. Maybe the age of those moving there is new, but not the accents :-)
FirefighterPale6832@reddit (OP)
Ah, yeah, of course
anysizesucklingpigs@reddit
What is the accent in Florida, out of curiosity?
NintendogsWithGuns@reddit
Same for Texas. In fact, the transplants tend to vote more conservatively than the natives. Beto O’Rourke got the majority of votes from native Texans, with the transplants mostly voting for the incumbent.
happyfatman021@reddit
Bet you most of those transplants are conservatives from blue states who see Texas as a conservative paradise. I speak from experience growing up in Bakersfield, CA where a great many people practically fetishize Texas for that reason.
NintendogsWithGuns@reddit
Yup!
https://www.newsweek.com/more-native-born-texans-voted-beto-orourke-ted-cruz-exit-polls-indicate-1209296
Salty_Dog2917@reddit
It’s the same for Arizona
Potential_Paper_1234@reddit
My first apartment in East Tennessee was $350 a month in 2010. Now you’re extremely lucky to find something less than $1,200 that’s not in the ghetto. I meet more people from out of state than natives when I go out downtown, and they’re not tourists.
Ouija_Bored_666@reddit
I work in downtown Knoxville, and I can definitely vouch for the insane number of transplants. I've even met quite a few Europeans who've moved here (by the way, who's telling people that East TN is a hip place to live???)
My mom's landlord has agreed to cap her rent at $800/month (she was paying $750 in 2013). She's still struggling, but prices like that anywhere near town are pretty much non-existent anymore.
Thinkingard@reddit
My best guess is it's because of the pandemic. People moved from expensive states that locked down a lot to states that barely locked down. Most often people vote with their feet and that's exactly what happened.
LeResist@reddit
$350??? Sis were you living in the hood??
draizetrain@reddit
I paid $600 a month in 2012 in upstate SC, and it was a nice area.
Alternative-Put-3932@reddit
You could get rent like that in my small town back in 2010 as well in Illinois. Housing just skyrocketed in general across the country. Now rents like 700+ in my town. Cities obviously generally double that.
PolicyWonka@reddit
It’s definitely a country-wide that really accelerated with Covid. Even in Wisconsin, we were able to sell our home for 33% more than our purchase price. All within 5 years.
Potential_Paper_1234@reddit
I mean even in 2017 I had a 1 bedroom in a “luxury” apartment complex that was super nice and in a gated community and it was 785. But we didn’t have a garage. I think those same apartments are $1700 now. People moving to the south have no clue how much they have driven up the costs. The problem is local incomes haven’t kept up with cost of living.
Briefface69@reddit
in 2017 i was paying 500 for an extremely spacious 2 bedroom apartment in a nice neighborhood next to a park outside knoxville, tn :(
Potential_Paper_1234@reddit
No not at all!
naetaejabroni@reddit
A two bedroom in South East GA with a garage, entrance gate, pool, dog park was less than $1k 10 to 15 years ago. It's triple that now
cbrooks97@reddit
Yes. Texas is exploding. They mostly moved here because of cheaper housing and now the houses are getting too expensive for the natives.
Apprehensive-Act-315@reddit
I think a lot of people would be surprised to learn of the New Great Migration of young, college educated black people moving to the South.
In fact black people are more likely to move to the South than white people.
Thinkingard@reddit
Don't they know about all the racism?
crazycatladybitt@reddit
It’s crazy. We bought ours for 85k and it’s worth like 260k now. We would make a great profit but not be able to afford anything else
DBL_NDRSCR@reddit
as a californian these numbers on a house are alien to me. 85k for a house sounds like 1980s, and 260k you could probably find something shitty and tiny until about 2010
Bubble_Lights@reddit
Yup. I'm in Mass, 3rd most expensive state to live in, right after CA in the #2 spot. We bought our 1200sq ft. ranch in 2016 for 365K and it is worth 550K now.
Tizzy8@reddit
I bought mine for $320k in 2019 and a smaller house on a worse lot around the corner just sold for over $650. Absolutely insane.
Left-Star2240@reddit
You bought a house in Mass for 365k? Where? Even ten years ago that would barely buy a 2 bed condo in my area.
Bubble_Lights@reddit
Do you live in a city? We're on the North Shore. That was 15K over asking and interest rates were really good at that time. My parent's 3 family house sold for 900K 2 years after that. I just looked and there is a multi-family in our town for 8.5K right now. And there's a 2BR 2B condo for 419K.
Rude-Illustrator-884@reddit
I remember driving in PA or Maryland a couple months ago and somebody was like “these houses are pretty expensive like $400k” and I was like “thats it?”. My brain can’t comprehend a $400k house being considered expensive.
Obi-Juan-K-Nobi@reddit
*just check the property taxes and that’ll put a halt on a lot of it. The first escrow analysis is quite the eye opener for most of these folks.
osteologation@reddit
There aren’t many houses in my county worth 400k. So definitely expensive to me. A newer good sized ranch style house on a few acres will run about 200-250k here. 150k will get a nice house in town. 100k livable but needs work/updating. I have an older house on 7 acres with a nice pole building and a small pond that Zillow thinks is worth 170k lol. Not to me it ain’t but whatever I guess.
Rude-Illustrator-884@reddit
Meanwhile there’s manufactured homes going for $600k in my city 🥲
chirop1@reddit
And that's why they all moved to Texas (and now Tennessee)
osteologation@reddit
I was thinking Tennessee or Kentucky especially the eastern parts because of winters being a bit milder and more trails for atvs lol
osteologation@reddit
Yeah well $20/hr is a decent wage here so there that lol
Major_Spite7184@reddit
And I can’t comprehend a $400K house. I can barely afford the one I bought for $119 in 2013.
OppositeRock4217@reddit
In coastal California, anything not priced in the 7 digits is considered cheap
CommandAlternative10@reddit
I remember when houses in my coastal CA city hit 300k. I was in fifth grade, all the parents were talking about it, it was 1990.
Imaginary_Roof_5286@reddit
My husband bout a 820 sq ft 2 bedroom 1 bath fixer upper in a community 20 miles south of L.A. in 1984 for $79K & so it to buy a larger home in 1990 for $170K. That house has since been added onto to make it 1328 sq ft, 3 bedroom 2 bath with an estimated sale value of $885,000. Mind you, interest rates were in the double digits then. We knew of not a few people who made the mistake of getting an adjustable loan & gambling the rates would go down, only for the rates to go up & them to not be able to afford the payments. I think current interest rates are in the neighborhood of where they were when my parents bought their home in the early 1960s.
Sooner70@reddit
Even now it depends on where you are in California. I paid $72k for a house in the 1990s and you could get into something decent (albeit not extravagant) for $260k today. But then, I'm not in the LA basin.
hugeyakmen@reddit
I'm in the North Valley in a small city well separated from Sacramento, and median home price is still nearly $450k! To find something under $300k anymore, you're generally looking at under 1000 sq ft and/or way out in the boonies or fire areas.
It's pretty messed up if I stop to think about it, but this is where family is
arsonall@reddit
My house was $79k in ‘79.
It’s ~$1.1M today. No renovations, just the whole area exploded.
For additional context, it was ~$800k prior to ‘08, dropped down to ~$400k and has been rising since.
Neighbor just sold his 1 story house for $1.1M, and our area is heavy on “comp” pricing, so this is now the minimum a house on our street will sell for.
South Orange County, so known as a pretty affluent area.
Bright_Cattle_7503@reddit
Depends on location. I’ll look and see a nice house in the LA area for $210,000 then next on the list is a smaller one for $4,999,999
rootoo@reddit
That’s the thing with people from Texas (and AZ and other states) complaining about California transplants bringing up the price.
You should see what transplants did to the prices in California!
IAmMey@reddit
Got a three bed two bath, with nearly 3000 square feet, attached garage, and a yard for 200k.
I don’t live in the middle of nowhere, but I can see it from here.
My last house I bought for 117 and sold for 160 after 3 years of living in it. Been in a house for 6ish years. So the house out here is going insane too.
DBL_NDRSCR@reddit
you should move the decimal point to the right and then add some more. houses just don't come that big here
IAmMey@reddit
Most houses have increased by at least 50%. Some houses have increased over 200%. Similarish for you?
DBL_NDRSCR@reddit
i was 10 6 years ago but that sounds about right, houses are probably 60-70% more since then
r2k398@reddit
I can make twice as much as I do working in California though. But f that. I would never live there.
Harry_Gorilla@reddit
The rest of us feel the same about your prices
-dag-@reddit
I mean that's exactly the way it's been in Minneapolis too. Almost exactly the same numbers and timeline.
I expected way worse given all the hysteria about CA.
splorp_evilbastard@reddit
We bought in Austin in 2011 for $235k and sold in 2024 for $649,900. It's insane. If we would have sold about 18 months earlier, we could have cracked $700k.
StarbuckWoolf@reddit
Same here.
Calaveras_Grande@reddit
Texas is the west not the south. If people wear cowboy hats more often than baseball hats, you are in the west.
cbrooks97@reddit
Where in Texas do you see people where cowboy hats more often than baseball caps?
Calaveras_Grande@reddit
TBH I havent driven through TX in years. Maybe fashion styles changed. But its still the state I seen more cowboy hats than any other.
Suppafly@reddit
It's the worst of both.
UnattributableSpoon@reddit
So many Texans moving up here to Wyoming, too.
Harry_Gorilla@reddit
We considered that move. Couldn’t pull the trigger on it though
gtne91@reddit
Its Wyoming. Everyone gets 10+ sq miles, you never have to see your neighbors.
Harry_Gorilla@reddit
Gotta head to the grocery store eventually
gtne91@reddit
From what I can tell, the entire state of Wyoming shops at my Costco in Timnath, CO.
Harry_Gorilla@reddit
So all 200 of you?
gtne91@reddit
I am in CO, not WY.
draizetrain@reddit
That’s exactly what’s happening in SC. 2BR/1.5BA house two streets down from me sold for $750K.
Randvek@reddit
Sounds like a blue state problem.
Just kidding, happens everywhere eventually. Texas was just a bit behind the curve.
WaltKerman@reddit
Only Austin housing can't keep up. Everywhere else is pretty cheap
cbrooks97@reddit
"Cheap" is a relative term. Yeah, the folks moving here from California and NY think it's cheap, but my house's on-paper value has more than doubled in 15 years (with the associated increase in taxes). People who don't have six figure jobs can't afford to live in this little town anymore.
boldjoy0050@reddit
So many of my native Texan coworkers tell me “I couldn’t afford my house today if I had to rebuy it”
osteologation@reddit
I have the same issue here in Michigan.
rootoo@reddit
I think that’s pretty much anywhere in the country that’s at all desirable to live. Leaves us that don’t own in a tough spot.
boldjoy0050@reddit
At this point only smaller cities and towns in the Midwest or Deep South are affordable. But of course there are no jobs there.
I realize not everyone wants to share walls but building more condos or townhouses can really solve the housing problem in the US.
rootoo@reddit
Houses here in Philadelphia have doubled in the past 5 years.
Ashamed_Fuel2526@reddit
The only cheap areas are parts of the state you wouldn't want to live in.
WaltKerman@reddit
Texas is way cheaper than other states.
I just bought a 3000' two story house for 400k in Houston in an extremely nice neighborhood. Most big cities aren't like this.
aetuf@reddit
Austin has expanded their housing and actually saw home prices brought down.
Harry_Gorilla@reddit
Yet it’s still over-crowded
vwsslr200@reddit
Can't ignore the differences in magnitude of the problem though.
Texans think their housing has gotten expensive compared to before but it's still far, far cheaper than California.
HailMadScience@reddit
Well, it's a cycle, not a curve, really.
poliver1972@reddit
Could also be because Toyota and Tesla moved their corporate headquarters there as well.
cbrooks97@reddit
I'm not sure how many people you think work for Toyota and Tesla. I know so many people who've recently moved to Texas and no one who works for either of those companies. A lot of companies have moved to Texas. And a lot of people have moved to take jobs unrelated to companies moving.
poliver1972@reddit
I've been by the Toyota office in Plano....and have seen the increase in traffic in Plano since they moved there...which was what 10 years ago or so? It's a huge office...google AI says Toyota alone staffs over 4000 people...so with families that's 8-10000 people in the Dallas fort Worth area as a result of one company. Tesla staffs 23000 in austin so again with families that's close to 80000 people.
fatpad00@reddit
8-10,000 people is a drop in the bucket for DFW.
Soooo many companies have brought jobs to the area. US Census bureau ranked DFW #1 in numerical growth from 2010-2019, over 1.2 million.
Houston and Austin both made the top 10, #2 and #8 respectively.
Obviously Toyota moving there certainly did have an impact, but the entire west Plano/Frisco area has been pretty much constant aggressive growth over the last 20+ years.
Fit-Possible-9552@reddit
Welcome to what Colorado went through with Californians for the past 30 years
FarCoyote8047@reddit
Same is happening in NM. It’s crazy.
anhuys@reddit
'Family vloggers' (child exploiters) have been moving to Texas ever since California announced new regulations that would require them to set money aside for the kids featured in their content, instead of keeping it all. It's a cheap place to live compared to CA, profitable market for 'family content' and no one limiting their greed and exploitation. So there's that too!
jasapper@reddit
And should TX decide to crack down (lol, they won't) FL is relaxing child labor laws to replace migrant workers. Could be an untapped gold mine of "family content". Just ridiculous.
greysnowcone@reddit
I highly doubt there’s enough family vloggers to move the needle
anhuys@reddit
Oh they're definitely not causing a boom by any means, not a big enough demographic for that, but it says something about the desirability or status of Texas rn. For people like that leaving CA, Texas seems to be top of the list.
DejaBlonde@reddit
Yup. Bought our first home, a 1000-ish sqft 2-bed condo, for 135k in October. If not for the age of the property, and some of the condition (since exteriors fall under HOA) it probably would have been higher.
The location also did us some favors. I actually talked to a neighbor recently who seemed surprised that I was actually living in it instead of being a landlord like the majority of the community.
cbrooks97@reddit
I bought my 2000 sqft house on half an acre for 135k in 2007. Now it's a 400k house. Nothing's changed except that every cow pasture has now been turned into a subdivision.
dulcetsloth@reddit
Yes, we had to move to Oklahoma. my husband and I were born here. we're both teachers and we just couldn't swing it anymore.
giraflor@reddit
We have loved ones who moved to Texas for cheap housing three years ago and now are desperate to leave because of the political environment.
Drslappybags@reddit
Then people get here and are surprised about things like the property taxes and laws. Not the free state they thought it was.
External_Produce7781@reddit
Also some of the highest property taxes in the entire country.
joepierson123@reddit
Ever since air conditioning was invented
Aggravating_Bell_426@reddit
Even before that - rich people use to spend the winter in Florida...
Bender_2024@reddit
In New England we call them Snowbirds. They fly South for the winter and come back in the summer.
sdavitt88@reddit
Same in MN, Arizona and Florida seem to be the favorite winter destinations.
Aggravating_Bell_426@reddit
Snowbirds are mostly upper middle class and post WW2 phenomenon. I'm talking about the truly wealthy(think Astors and Rockefellers) who used to take the train(often on their own private Pullman cars!) down to their Florida estates. This was at a time when commercial aviation was almost non-existent and air conditioning was stupid expensive. Ever seen the Marx brothers movie "Cocoanuts"? It parodies exactly this sot of thing
Aggravating_Bell_426@reddit
Snowbirds are mostly upper middle class and post WW2 phenomenon. I'm talking about the truly wealthy(think Astors and Rockefellers) who used to take the train(often on their own private Pullman cars!) down to their Florida estates. This was at a time when commercial aviation was almost non-existent and air conditioning was stupid expensive. Ever seen the Marx brothers movie "Cocoanuts"? It parodies exactly this sot of thing.
Aggravating_Bell_426@reddit
Snowbirds are mostly upper middle class and post WW2 phenomenon. I'm talking about the truly wealthy(think Astors and Rockefellers) who used to take the train(often on their own private Pullman cars!) down to their Florida estates. This was at a time when commercial aviation was almost non-existent and air conditioning was stupid expensive. Ever seen the Marx brothers movie "Cocoanuts"? It parodies exactly this sot of thing.
Rando1ph@reddit
there are still large swaths of the south that are sparsely populated, but parts of Florida, Texas, Phoenix, Southern California, absolutely. Air conditioning expanded the sun belt considerably. Especially common for old people, either migrating for the winter or retiring somewhere warm.
PlayItAgainSusan@reddit
It's about affordable housing, land, often no state income tax. There are no deals anymore though. The other piece is industry- the American South is set up to be the new off-shoring. Huge tax breaks, tax payer funded corporations, zero- little workers rights, extremely low wages. Some southern states have already repealed child labour laws.
MaleficentCoconut594@reddit
Cost of living (NY, Boston, etc) has skyrocketed along with inflation and wages haven’t kept up. The south is financially way more attractive
Hell, we made the same move 1.5yrs ago. Just night our first house, would’ve never been able to afford this up North without living paycheck to paycheck
Redbubble89@reddit
No one is going to Mississippi, Louisiana, or Alabama. The state has to offer something. North Carolina, Texas, and Georgia are the big winners that have jobs and lower cost of living without being absolute shit holes or last in education or quality of life stats.
UnfairHoneydew6690@reddit
People are absolutely moving to Alabama. They might not be going to small town Oneonta but anywhere within an hour of Huntsville or Birmingham is full of transplants.
Drivo566@reddit
People forget that Huntsville has Redstone Arsenal. NASA, Space X, and Blue Origin are all on site, along with a lot of defense contractors - so that city definitely draws in science and engineering jobs from around the country.
I've only been there on a work trip, but it definitely seemed like there were a lot of educated transplants.
Dry_Umpire_3694@reddit
And adventists. Lots of Adventists.
naetaejabroni@reddit
Maybe Oneonta itself soon. Trussvile, Gadsen, and Jasper are a stones throw away.
TheRandomestWonderer@reddit
Amen. We are absolutely covered in transplants.
NoSober__SoberZone@reddit
I moved to Alabama from Indiana
BoyEdgar23@reddit
Indiana is the Alabama of the Midwest
LeResist@reddit
You're correct that LA and MS are losing population but not correct about Alabama
AlfredoAllenPoe@reddit
Actually, Alabama is experiencing rapid growth in many markets and positive net migration.
You're right about Louisiana and Mississippi. Them and New Mexico are the only Sun Belt that are stagnant or shrinking.
Dry_Umpire_3694@reddit
Yes it’s happening in Tennessee and Georgia. My parents live in Tennessee where there is no state tax so lots of people from the northeast and California are moving there. I live in Georgia we have state tax but cost of living is low and the amount of house you can get here versus what you would get in say California would be pennies on the dollar plus you get land and a view with it if you desire. We also have excellent school systems in Georgia we invest more them than Tennessee schools.
But we move slow down here so don’t bring no bs with you ok!
Expert-Leg8110@reddit
Texas and Florida have experienced huge migrations from northern states.
BigMacRedneck@reddit
Correct
Big-Detective-19@reddit
Yup. Georgia, Texas, South Carolina, North Carolina, Florida, and Tennessee have had huge influxes of people from the north and Midwest. This has been ongoing since the 50s and it tends to erode the southern accent while also changing voting patterns.
Initially many of these transplants actually pushed the south towards being more Republican, with suburbs of places like Atlanta going heavily for Reagan, Nixon, etc, but now these populations are going blue while the southerners get redder seemingly every day.
My family has been in Georgia since the 1700s and so I have heard perspectives on this from people who knew what Georgia was like before and during the thrust of these migrations. I think it’s a net plus at least for where I am. Atlanta my hometown has gone from a backwater to one of the more prominent cities.
EUGsk8rBoi42p@reddit
Atlanta was never a backwater.
Random-OldGuy@reddit
Actually it was not as important to the South or the US in general until after 1950s. Birminham was the main regional center and was called Magic City because it was so successful back then.
EUGsk8rBoi42p@reddit
No. General Sherman razed the city *because* it was the major regional center, and always was the capital of Georgia.
Random-OldGuy@reddit
You are not correct. Yes, during Civil War it was a transport choke point, much like Corinth, MS. However, after the war it wasn't nearly as important and Birmingham had more wealth from shortly after its founding until mid-1950s.
PhilaRambo@reddit
The first state capitol was Savannah , then Augusta, followed by Louisville , then Milledgeville. Atlanta became the state capitol in 1868
DubiousSpaniel@reddit
Yes and No, I think… Atlanta was pretty much blown up, burnt, and in bad shape at the end of the civil war; and I must have heard or read dozens of times that Birmingham, AL and Atlanta were very similar cities before Atlanta expanded the airport . Birmingham is backwaterish, so maybe they both were, say before WW2?
That being said, once the highway act of 1956 was passed, and interstates 1-75, I-85, and I-20 were designed such that they all met in downtown Atlanta, all bets were off! Combined with the pre-existing rail infrastructure, the growth of both Delta and Eastern Airlines (and thus the airport), and an incredible level of civic, chamber of commerce type, boosterism ( culminating in the improbable winning of the 1996 Olympics), Atlanta really couldn’t lose.
EUGsk8rBoi42p@reddit
Plus, gotta factor in the boiled peanuts. 🥜 💯
Tudorrosewiththorns@reddit
My family has lived in Atlanta since the 1700s and it's an extremely different place since my parents were kids. Gwinnett and Cobb used to be really rural . We have more people then our infrastructure can handle.
Annoyed_Heron@reddit
Surely it was a bit disconnected in early America?
Big-Detective-19@reddit
Yes that was self depreciating humor on my part
Beneficial_Equal_324@reddit
You could add Arkansas and Alabama to the list: they both have higher per capita in-migration than Georgia. I suspect that they get more transplants from the Midwest vs. East Coast so aren't on the media radar as relocation hot spots.
wbruce098@reddit
Alabama is probably the next place to really transform. The influx of migration has also been coupled with (a few) really high paying jobs throughout the state. It’s slow but steady enough.
Alternative-Law4626@reddit
I think television has done more to erode the local accent than carpetbaggers, but the carpetbaggers haven't helped. I bounced around so much in my life that I haven't done my part to maintain the local accent. My family has been in Virginia since the 1740s, and the other half South Carolina since the 1790s (followed by Mississippi since 1819). I grew up partly in Maryland and partly in Nebraska, Missouri, and Florida. Then joined the Army and went down you see you in Georgia, then out to California, then Germany for a few years, back to Nebraska. Then, back to DC, Maryland, and finally Virginia for over 30 years, Most of that time within 5 miles of where my family lived over 150 years ago.
I don't know when Atlanta was a "backwater." Atlanta was built for no other reason that it was a critical transportation node. It's been a mover of critical goods since its birth. Same with Richmond, Virginia. It sits on the land that was critical to transport goods from the valleys and mountains of Virginia to the ocean. first by canal boat and then by rail.
crazycatlady331@reddit
Atlanta still is critical for transportation. It has the busiest airport in the world.
That said, there's so much potential for Atlanta to be a southern (passenger) rail hub. Maybe in my lifetime.
DejaBlonde@reddit
The TV is also a good point. I do personally find myself using a few British-isms thanks to BBC shows as well, not always helped by having English cousins.
DejaBlonde@reddit
I guess that first part explains why someone asked me yesterday where I was from because I didn't sound local. I had to tell them I'm actually a lifelong, 7th generation Texan.
Granted, my mom moved around some in her early years which muddled her accent a bit, and my dad had to do speech therapy as a kid (couldn't say L, which is a problem when your sister's name is Laurie) so his was also softened.
ColossusOfChoads@reddit
Happened in a lot of the inland California farm towns along I-80 as Bay Area people went further and further east so they could buy giant houses. Blue dog farm democrats that had been in office since the Korean War being unseated by upstart suburban Republicans.
Bitter_Ad8768@reddit
I live in Ohio and there's a lot of tourism ads for the South. Hilton Head, Asheville, Gatlinburg, and Savannah are the big ones. Most people who leave Ohio for non-work-related reasons either go to the West Coast or they go to the South.
madogvelkor@reddit
I'm in New England, and people tend to move to the South on the I-95 corridor. Usually for job opportunities, lower cost of living, or wanting to be somewhere more conservative. Or all three.
Florida used to be the default but it has gotten more and more expensive. So now I hear a lot of people talking about the Carolinas.
tcspears@reddit
Texas and Florida have been seeing a ton of inflow since COVID. They had less restrictions during COVID, and the weather is much nicer than other parts of the country, plus they have infrastructure and lots of jobs.
I know lots of people who moved to Texas or Florida during COVID, and enjoy it down there. The cost of living is a fraction of what it is in the Northeast, everything is more laid back, and there are plenty of jobs if you can't work remote.
draizetrain@reddit
Yes, soooo many people move to South Carolina from New Jersey and Ohio
InstructionSad7842@reddit
Yup.
Flyboy367@reddit
Yea, gave up my 2 bedroom cape cod one a 100ftx80ft lot with 14k a year in taxes to. 5 bedroom on 5 acres with a creek and woods for 1200 a year in taxes. And paid half off with what I sold my house for
Gold-Leather8199@reddit
Why the hell would people do that, poorest states, bad education, no money
NoSober__SoberZone@reddit
There’s much more to states than just stats that people rattle off on Reddit. Most are moving into large, rich cities. These cities have good education and healthcare. It’s the rural areas of these states that really drag down the statistics. Clearly people would not be moving to the south if it was as bad as Reddit pretends it to be
Gold-Leather8199@reddit
I watch the news, not on here. There are still the poorest states. One or two city's doesn't count
NoSober__SoberZone@reddit
That’s my point?? They’re moving to the cities not rural areas. The cities and suburbs are extremely well off. Just because a state ranks low in something doesn’t mean the entire state is like that. There’s rich places in Alabama just as there’s poor places in New York or California.
Gold-Leather8199@reddit
You can't compare Alabama to New York or California, us in the north support the poor little south
NoSober__SoberZone@reddit
You’re completely missing my point, you’re being obtuse on purpose lol
Gold-Leather8199@reddit
I call those states poor because their gdp is way lower than northern blue states. The Alabama gdp was 245.3 billion last year, Minnesota is 483.2 billion, you produce less then blue states, Georgia has a close to Minnesota
NoSober__SoberZone@reddit
Yes, that’s clear. I’m not saying the southeast is an economic power house. But there are places in those states that are wealthy. So when you say “why the hell would people do that (move to poor states)”, my point is that they aren’t moving to the poor areas of those states. Again take Alabama, people are moving to Huntsville and Birmingham suburbs, they aren’t moving to trailer parks in the sticks. Just like people moving to California aren’t moving to poor towns in the Valley. They’re moving to the large wealthy areas. People moving to Illinois aren’t moving to southern/central Illinois, they’re moving to the greater Chicago area.
FoxyLady52@reddit
Yes. We did.
TheRandomestWonderer@reddit
People are flocking to north and central Alabama. So yep.
FirefighterPale6832@reddit (OP)
Are there that many people from the northern US there? What percentage do you estimate?
AdPsychological790@reddit
Not sure percentages. But the whole city is built on military and high tech. Guess where that talent pool comes from? Not Alabama.
AdPsychological790@reddit
When we immigrated to the US in the 80s our first stop was Huntsville . A lot of transplants are not southern. Huntsville has: 3 smallish universities- considerable number of foreign students. Surprising number of South Asians. US Army Missle Command at Redstone Arsenal. Marshall Space Flight Center/ NASA. Boeing. General Dynamics. PPG. Textron. Draper. Nortnrop Grumman. Teledyne Brown. Blue Origin. L3Harris. Raytheon. Collins Aerospace. Sikorsky. Lockheed Martin. Toyota and Mazda. FBI has an office there.
TheRandomestWonderer@reddit
Yes, the majority of transplants are from the northern part of the US. Places like New York and New Jersey, Ohio, also California, Michigan, and Maryland. My husband is a plumber and is out in the public every day, he does work for British and Australians transplants. We have a huge influx of Indian, Iranian, French Haitians, African, Chinese, Koreans as well. In North Alabama there are a lot of federal workers that work for NASA and Redstone Arsenal.
FirefighterPale6832@reddit (OP)
Midwestern transplants too?
TheRandomestWonderer@reddit
Occasionally, more than often I see people who are from the East Coast or the West Coast. I do see quite a few Texas tags in town, usually I feel like that means they came from NASA as well. The Midwest has quite a little bit in common with the south so I feel like they don’t need to come here to get the majority of what we have.
Beneficial_Equal_324@reddit
In South Alabama I think there are more Midwesterners than East Coasters. Tons of snowbirds from the Midwest, some end up staying. I suspect the substantial auto industry and other manufacturing jobs in AL brings more Midwesterners.
Classicman098@reddit
I know there’s a trend of middle and upper-middle class black people moving from Chicago to Atlanta. And this is part of an ongoing trend of black migration from northern cities back to the south due to lower costs of living (and the fact that most black people live in the south anyway, and that is where black culture thrives the most).
AdPsychological790@reddit
Down South is where the families of Chicago's blacks came from in the 1920s and 30's.
LeResist@reddit
Tbh I feel like Atlanta almost the capital for Black people tho. It don't surprise me people go there. I know people go for the music scene too
freedraw@reddit
The northeast and west coast are still economic powerhouses, but those states have allowed the cost of housing/living to get so insane, even the higher salaries just aren't worth it for young people trying to stay. So they move to more affordable states.
TheYeast1@reddit
Funny since people move to affordable states with remote work, pensions, and such, they push out people from those states who can’t compete. It’s an endless cycle I guess
freedraw@reddit
Pretty much. I hate when people moving in because they were priced out of their old home get blamed for driving up prices though. It’s not their fault they can’t afford California or Massachusetts anymore. Everyone’s gotta live somewhere. Blame should be put at the feet of the politicians and their NIMBY voters who manufactured the housing crisis.
BlueonBlack26@reddit
Yes. Stop coming, we are full
Comfortable-Study-69@reddit
Yes, but importantly not to Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Arkansas, and Oklahoma, which all have net migration losses.
tu-vens-tu-vens@reddit
Alabama, Oklahoma, and Arkansas have had net migration gains since 2020 (AL and OK both in the top 10).
Comfortable-Study-69@reddit
https://www.cato.org/blog/mapping-interstate-migration
Oops, sorry yeah I accidentally used 2016 data.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._states_and_territories_by_net_migration
Wikipedia has the combined 2020-2024 net migration rates and it looks like Mississippi is the only southern state with a net migration rate loss (unless you count Virginia as part of the south).
slothfarm@reddit
Texas, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Missouri are all “booming” cultural areas for just random people wanting to move there. Austin, North West Arkansas, Coastal-SC/GA/North Florida, are booming industry wise for jobs and such.
BeatnikMona@reddit
Yes, but there’s a big shift going on.
I was born and raised in a rural small town near Tampa, Florida and lived in the Tampa Bay Area my entire life—mostly in the city itself or near the beach in Clearwater.
Part of me always wanted to travel more, but living there was convenient. The weather is nice, my entire family lives there, housing was affordable. Politically, things were split but where I lived was pretty progressive. The idea of living somewhere more artsy was a pipe dream because everyone would talk about how expensive things are in cities like Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles, etc.
But then the pandemic happened and our moronic governor acted like COVID didn’t exist and made the state look like a utopia for conservatives who thought wearing a mask was a symbol of oppression. People moved to Florida in droves and it was impossible to keep up with the demand. It got worse during the Biden administration because these angry conservatives from northern states kept moving down. Suddenly my $900 apartment was $2,000 and despite owning a business, I had to get a second job.
My friends are all progressive and alternative in some way, we’re all artsy or involved in the LGBTQIA+ community, stuff like that. Most everyone either has a plan to move or has already moved west, myself included.
So we’re seeing a certain demographic move south, which is skyrocketing the cost of living, which makes people who no longer feel comfortable there want to move. Since they’re now used to everything being double the cost of what it used to be, moving west is more attainable.
samof1994@reddit
A lot of younger people did it for schools too as they kept the schools open. A lot of the"pushing the liberals out" is a feature(esp in Florida), not a bug.
BeatnikMona@reddit
The schools weren’t kept open, they went virtual for the rest of the school year as well and most kept a hybrid setup for the following year.
Icy-Whale-2253@reddit
Yes, because housing is much more affordable down there. Not because they particularly like it better.
wbruce098@reddit
But with lower cost housing in an “up and coming” suburb, it’s easy to move to a place with decent schools and services.
BoseSounddock@reddit
Yes. Seems like nobody in Florida is from Florida.
BeatnikMona@reddit
And those of us who are from Florida are leaving.
wbruce098@reddit
Facts.
inmidSeasonForm@reddit
Always been that way, friend. Fourth gen Floridian here.
Capistrano9@reddit
Not really. A few Southern cities have seen a big spike in population. But there are whole states in the South that are continuing a rapid loss of people.
Kitykity77@reddit
Lol, no, not at all. My northern blue state has “refugees” from the south asking how to relocate dozens of times per day and the influx of Texans is discouraging. If you have children the vax rates and education is rough and there are open fascists.
Odd-Help-4293@reddit
It's very common for Americans to retire to warm, cheap southern states. So with the Boomers retiring, I'm sure that's the case.
olsi_85@reddit
Although the last trend has been retirees, there are also more transplants who move to certain areas because they already travel for work or can work remotely.
wbruce098@reddit
This. High cost of living pushes people out and remote work gives them the flexibility to move to lower cost areas and live relatively well.
Most of them are harmless — and gladly contribute to the local economy.
Fun_Independent_7529@reddit
Yeah, I was wondering if this is just a result of the aging population.
Like someone said though, this is a cycle -- the boomers are mostly dying off in the next 20 years, that wealth will be transferred to their GenX & Millennial kids, and everything will shift again.
fenrirwolf1@reddit
Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana are all loosing population. Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina are all going, primarily in their metropolitan areas. Texas and Florida are their own entities.
NoSober__SoberZone@reddit
Alabama is gaining population
fenrirwolf1@reddit
My apology, it is Birmingham that is losing population.
tu-vens-tu-vens@reddit
Birmingham city is losing population but the Birmingham metro area is gaining population.
fenrirwolf1@reddit
Ah, the Detroit syndrome
tu-vens-tu-vens@reddit
Not quite – the whole Detroit metro area has lost population and is less populous than it was in 1970.
bayern_16@reddit
Yes. Especially from places like NY and California. I live in Chicago and people are fleeing the state (taxes, crime, weather cost of living etc.). Chicago public schools are catastrophic.
DMDingo@reddit
I heard of a lot of people moving to Texas or wanting to move there. Reasons vary from taxes, weather, politics, gun laws (lack thereof), and their laxness on sex offenders.
Not saying any of these are right, but I know that there is also an influx of interest in people moving here to Illinois because of our state protections and the general double bird our governor is throwing to the FOTUS.
SabreDuFoil@reddit
It's been "make your money in the north, retire in the south" for at least as long as I've been alive.
Higher cost of living = higher level of pay = higher 401k contributions. Work up north and you'll have more money saved by retirement than those in the south.
Buy a house up north, sit in it for a few years, sell it, double your money. Move to the south, buy a house for 25% of what you made off of selling the house, then live off of the remaining 75%.
Do the same as above, but maintain a remote job that's hq'd in an expensive cost of living area.
msspider66@reddit
11 years ago I went from Brooklyn to Wilmington, NC
It was not a good fit for me. I lasted nine months.
I ended up heading north to Metro Detroit. I am still there.
TheYeast1@reddit
Shit you moved out at a good time, I’m about to priced out. Somehow everything’s doubled in cost here without anything new really happening
msspider66@reddit
It did get really high there. So did Michigan.
Seems like the only affordable places left are in the backwoods of Mississippi or Alabama. I’d rather sleep undue a bridge
Calaveras_Grande@reddit
Not really. There was some moving around after the pandemic. But mostly its real estate surging from hedge fund investment and people blaming it on California and NY because they saw a license plate at Food Lion.
Background-Clock9626@reddit
Yes, escaping the brutal winters and high taxes of the north
Calaveras_Grande@reddit
Texas is the west, not the south. Do folks wear cowboy hats more than normal where you live? You are in the west.
throw20190820202020@reddit
Yes, and it’s true about the housing being the cause.
In our case, it was the knowledge that there was no way in hell that my kids would be able to both find work and afford a place once grown. They’re in college now, but I know they would have moved for either jobs or real estate if we had stayed back East.
Though I want them to just live at home forever, they (or their spouses) might have other ideas eventually, but the much larger house I bought in TX also has a lot more room for them to stay as long as they can.
Add the extra disposable income I have from spending less on housing and I have even more resources to prepare for retirement and help my kids with either space and time to save or funds for their own down payments.
DecemberPaladin@reddit
Right here—moved from New England to the Carolinas in 2006.
OutOfTheBunker@reddit
You moved there and you still don't know which Carolina you moved to?
DecemberPaladin@reddit
Yeah, crazy thing, right? I had it written down somewhere, but it just never occurred to me.
Of course I know which, it wasn’t germane, christ almighty
Snoo_6465@reddit
There’s a general reshuffle of the US population going on, generally along political lines. People on both sides struggle to interact with people on the other side, and so many are moving to places where they’ll feel more comfortable surrounded by likeminded people.
hegelianbitch@reddit
Maybe but I think the electoral college map has people confused on where they'd be surrounded by like-minded people
largos7289@reddit
LOL wait till the culture shock sets in, then they all move back. Southern living is a vastly different animal then the northerners are use to.
Colseldra@reddit
It's because it's basically supply and demand
All these states are getting expensive asf to live in now
Just capitalism moving around lol
TheYeast1@reddit
And once NC costs California prices in 50 years people will move to the Midwest
cometshoney@reddit
Yankees move to my state, and it's just a matter of two summers before they run back home. They simply can't stand the humidity.
Amishpornstar7903@reddit
The northern people love this simple trick.
WealthTop3428@reddit
Yes.
Carrotstick2121@reddit
Yes. COVID in particular spurred a major migration of people, due to a combination of low interest rates, large amounts of housing inventory, and unprecedented mobility options due to employment circumstances (i.e., tons of people were laid off or suddenly working remotely or on furlough and took the opportunity to make life changes.) The southern states like to pretend that it's because the northern states are so terrible and so people wanted to escape them and now we make the southern states terrible, too, but of course reality and perception are two different things. Lots of people moved regionally also, like within the same state, or shifted to living primarily from a second home rather than their city apartment, etc.
OppositeRock4217@reddit
Yes, but only to some states like Texas, Florida, Georgia, Carolinas, Tennessee and Virginia. Louisiana, Mississippi and West Virginia are having more people move out while Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky and Oklahoma have pretty neutral migration numbers
Beneficial_Equal_324@reddit
Ark and Alabama are strongly positive since 2020.
Mamapalooza@reddit
Yes. Atlanta is full, y'all stay out of Georgia.
But here's a map for you to scroll through. Red - they left. Blue - they arrived.
https://www.northamerican.com/migration-map
Zestyclose_Stage_673@reddit
I live in Eastern TN. I can totally confirm this. House prices and rent where I live are freaking outrageous from all the new people.
Extreme_Opposite3375@reddit
Texas has now a huge influx of northerners
revolutionoverdue@reddit
The south, southwest, and Texas have been growing for decades.
PA_MallowPrincess_98@reddit
It’s the California transplants moving to Nashville and Texas for me! I wouldn’t be surprised if they are trying to escape the need for a Coogan Account and their Income Taxes. Think of Brittany Xavier and The LaBrant Family who exploit their kids on social media and they homeschool because it’s a common trend right now.
In my area of NEPA, we’re getting an influx of people who were originally from Brooklyn or Harlem before those areas were gentrified. It’s because of the cheap real estate and WE BUY HOUSES signs all over the place! Those homes are in rough shape to begin with. Most of those people are making our area have a bad reputation when they weren’t born and raised there to understand our values of being kind and taking care of others. It’s always a transplant who ends up on the Police Blotter section of the newspaper🫠
minidog8@reddit
To the southwest? Yes. To most southeast states? I don’t really think so, barring Florida and Texas (is Texas considered SE or SW?)
tu-vens-tu-vens@reddit
Florida and Texas are the top two for domestic migration, but South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, and Alabama are all in the top 10. Only Mississippi and Louisiana are losing residents.
minidog8@reddit
Interesting. I understand Georgia and NC but the others are surprising!
tu-vens-tu-vens@reddit
South Carolina has tourism with the beaches, Charleston is booming, and Greenville is growing a ton as part of the Atlanta-Charlotte corridor. Tennessee has Nashville. Alabama is a little more surprising but is seeing growth near the beaches, in Huntsville, in the Birmingham suburbs, and in Tuscaloosa and smaller cities scattered throughout the state. AL only slightly broke even in the 2010s but has grown a lot since COVID, while the others have grown a lot since 2010 and before.
minidog8@reddit
I mean there is migration there don’t get me wrong but my anecdote is that people seem to move for cheaper living and then leave because they don’t like the lack of amenities they are used too and they don’t mesh with the community or lifestyle.
Impossible_Product34@reddit
Even my home state of Kentucky (a state not particularly experiencing the same boom as Texas, Florida, and Tennessee) has seen ton of population growth, especially along the interstate corridors. Rent is starting to get insane like everywhere else
LowSatisfaction7636@reddit
Yes. I live in Texas and in my city we had to house people in hotels. In a short time we have seen rent and housing increase like crazy. We also have tons of development of houses and apartments. Construction is everywhere.
Educated_Clownshow@reddit
They moved south for covid cuz it was cheaper
They’re now learning that southern states are trash in terms of infrastructure and tax policies. Florida and Texas are going to be the first two regional housing markets to collapse, they’re teetering right now.
Hawaii and Colorado have some of the lowest tax rates in the country and somehow I have public transit, state funded/subsidized health care (if I need it), I can use drugs (I smoke weed, used to do hallucinogens) without any fear of any legal trouble, and I get as much sunshine as southern states without the humidity or bugs
I lived in South Carolina for a decade and will never, under any circumstance, move back to red state.
ParticularBuyer6157@reddit
Soooo many transplants in Georgia
inmidSeasonForm@reddit
Yesssss, friend.
TheDeaconAscended@reddit
Kinda, I live in NJ and many people move to Florida and some to Texas. NJ is the densest state in the country, if Texas had our population density it would have over 300 million people living in it. While a large number of people have left NJ, we have had net positive migration of people into the state. Our inventory for single homes and rentals is extremely tight. Old people and those looking for a lower cost of living move to the South but those looking to start a family or career move to the North East. Schools in general are night and day, healthcare means you are looking at a shorter life expectancy, and drastically increased crime rates. In a way you are seeing people move from a high standard of living to one potentially much lower.
https://www.resiclubanalytics.com/p/housing-market-inventory-state-update-march-2025
Derwin0@reddit
Yes, been happening for decades.
AdamOnFirst@reddit
Yes. Cost of living, jobs, weather, growth… it’s all in the sun belt.
Fit-Rip-4550@reddit
It's mixed. There is a lot of movement towards the south, but the general rule is movement is from less economically free states to more economically free states.
granolabreath@reddit
It's true that many people move for jobs, to retire, climate, etc. and those opportunities don't exist for all Americans for a host of reasons including things like finances and differing state laws (I.e. many places in the South have regressive laws about gender identity and sexual orientation).
It's uncommon for many people to move between states, let alone regions. Data shows that the average American lives within about 50 km of their hometown, for young adults that trends closer to 15km. Some of this info came from our government census bureau and ranges from 2 - 10 years old.
tu-vens-tu-vens@reddit
About 40% of people live in a state other than the one they were born in.
Comfortable-Owl-5929@reddit
I moved to the south (South Carolina)from the north 20 yrs ago strictly to be in the warmer sunny climate. Winters are brutal up north
OGMom2022@reddit
Nashville and I’ve finally been priced out of a city I love. Average 1b here is $1800/mo thanks to all the Californians moving here.
naetaejabroni@reddit
I can only speak anecdotally but yes. The population in south east GA has grown so much and so fast the infrastructure is having a hard time keeping up. Massive apartment complexes are being put in all over the place. On two lane roads with little to no room for expansion. There is basically no reliable public transit, traffic will be unbearable for commuters and emergency services. It is unfortunately motivating me to leave this area that I love and call home.
Drivo566@reddit
I haven't seen anyone mention this, but the film industry has also been a part of the migration. The film industry basically moved from Hollywood to the Atlanta metro area. Georgia now produces more films California.
That transition opened up a lot of new jobs and required a lot of people to move from California.
Major_Spite7184@reddit
Yes. NC has added well over 1 million people in the last 25 years and will probably continue on and even accelerated trajectory in the coming years.
Ok-Wrongdoer-9647@reddit
Idk if it’s true but the northeast has gotten unreasonably expensive to live in and salaries haven’t moved significantly in years. Also there is zero housing in the northeast. $2200 for a studio apartment anywhere within an hour of where I work and 400k gets you a house in a bad flood zone that you probably have to spend 100k+ on a gut and renovation. The worst part is that if you find anything in the 500k range that is mildly livable, you’re 90 minutes from where you need to be and you’re probably getting outbid by 100k+ AND that person is paying in cash so it’s impossible to enter the market here.
West-Improvement2449@reddit
It's the opposite. The great migration happened in the 20s. A lot black people moved up north from the siuth
Requilem@reddit
There has always been a migration to the south in America but not because of what most claim. The biggest reason is the weather for retired people, warm weather means less joint pains. The second reason is because of finances, northern states are where you can make the most money but if your not competitive in your field you'll end up drowning in debt. If you're looking for a simple life southern work is at a slower and calmer pace. Final reason is job relocations, southern states are changing laws to appeal to larger companies to move to for larger profits. Typically in that situation a company will try to get most of their talent to move with them.
Very few people make the move for political reasons like most MSM reports. The few that so end up regretting the decision but at that point are stuck and can no longer get back up north.
ColossusOfChoads@reddit
Why so?
Requilem@reddit
I misworded it slightly, I honestly don't know the exact amount that do and don't regret the move for political reasons. But I do know a lot that make the move do not realize the lack of infrastructure and social services along with the higher levels of poverty and lack of job market. If you look at the statistics southern states have higher welfare populations. The regret also only applies to the political migrants. I'm not referring to the other migrants I mentioned regretting the move, they in all honesty are typically happier individuals.
ColossusOfChoads@reddit
When I moved from the L.A. area to Las Vegas in the mid 00s, that cured me pretty fast of my high school libertarianism. They were right down there with Mississippi when it came to public education and public health, minus the excuse of being poor.
Been gone for a while, and my friends who stayed and started families there are continually tearing their hair out over the crappy schools. People assume it's a challenging place to raise a kid. On the one hand it's mostly normal boring suburbia (with a twist), but on the other hand people don't know the half of it!
Requilem@reddit
Vegas isn't quite the south. I grew up in NJ and have lived in West Virginia, South Carolina, and Florida for a total of 8 years (I'm back in NJ). The south comes really close to despising intelligence. Most are just dismissive of it.
DwarvenRedshirt@reddit
More to specific states than to "Southern US" as a whole.
milee30@reddit
Yes. And frankly as someone who grew up in one of those southern states and up until now has welcomed newcomers, I'm glad the migration to my area seems to be reversing a bit. Being hit by three hurricanes in one season - the final one being a direct hit - has apparently made some of the weaker Yankees reconsider their life choices. Good. Time to go home, folks!
FirefighterPale6832@reddit (OP)
Which state are you from ?
milee30@reddit
Florida.
In the past, most of the snowbirds, retirees and tourists to our area have come from the Midwest and Canada. After Covid, though, New York and New Jersey "discovered" us and it's been... not good.
FirefighterPale6832@reddit (OP)
I heard that there are a lot of French Canadians who travel to Florida.
milee30@reddit
Probably true. The Canadians I've encountered here have not been French Canadians, but it's probably a mix. Overall, the Canadians are nice people.
FirefighterPale6832@reddit (OP)
I remember that in the past, the Quebecois invaded New England
NeptuneHigh09er@reddit
They do for sure. I live in coastal NH and we see a ton of Quebecois in the summer. It’s an easy drive from the border (3 1/2 hours). They also visit the White Mountains for hiking trips, which is even closer.
Thasker@reddit
Yes, from Blue to Red.
AechEmElle@reddit
Definitely feels that way in East Tennessee.
That-Bluejay3533@reddit
Eww not this person
Grand_Taste_8737@reddit
Yes, not many people retire up north. Plus, taxes are generally less, which is always a good thing.
Uhhh_what555476384@reddit
Yes. Since the popularization is low cause air conditioning the Great Migration of African Americans from the South to the North and West has started to reverse. Additionally, there is a massive flow of aging Northeasterns of all demographics to places like Florida, and a much lesser extent Arizona, that is driven by the Baby Boomers retiring.
HOMES734@reddit
Mostly just Texas, which I would consider the “south west.”
MilkChocolate21@reddit
Black Americans have definitely been reverse migrating, and that includes people who don't have Southern roots. https://www.brookings.edu/articles/a-new-great-migration-is-bringing-black-americans-back-to-the-south/
DannyBones00@reddit
I live in rural Appalachia, in the area where Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia touch. We’re one of the most economically depressed areas of the nation, once called America’s internal colony. This whole region (generally speaking) relied on either coal mining or farming for a century and lost both industries. Oh, and we’re ground zero for the opioid epidemic.
The one positive thing about this area was how cheap it was.
Until a bunch of people from either up north, urban areas, or other parts of the country who wouldn’t have pissed on us if we were on fire (to borrow an Appalachian term) a decade ago flooded here.
Now we’ve got people making double the median income here who can’t afford rent because there’s simply not enough housing. It’s disgusting and is fomenting a type of anger that can’t be expressed.
44035@reddit
A lot of our old timers moved to Florida and now we're a blue state.
bonerland11@reddit
See Dearborn and Hamtramck for more evidence of this. /s
hems86@reddit
Yes. Though there has always been a natural flow of retirees from cold weather areas to warmers areas, there has been an uptick in the last few years. The main reasons are economic.
Many companies have been moving from northern and western states like New York and California to states in the south and sun belt, like Florida, Texas, Tennessee, Georgia, and the Carolinas. They are moving from high tax, high regulation, high cost of living, and less business friendly states to low tax, low regulation, low cost of living, and business friendly states. By making this move, they instantly increase their profitability. Obviously, people follow jobs.
Individuals are moving for similar reasons. People are moving from high cost of living cities & states to mid or low cost of living cities & states. You get an instant upgrade in standard of living. Paying 15% less taxes with housing that is 50%+ cheaper is a strong draw.
michelle427@reddit
It’s because California and New York are so expensive. The southern states have always been less expensive and not as popular. Texas, North and South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida are exploding with population. I think within 30 years those states will too expensive.
kaka8miranda@reddit
Boston to Tampa. Bought a house 40k under asking never gonna happen in MA
Electrical_Feature12@reddit
Yes. Citizen of the planet here, but from Dallas and always drawn back
Practically no one you meet here is from Dallas.
videogames_@reddit
Yes because cheaper housing and less or no state tax. Air con bill go crazy in the summer though.
lejunny_@reddit
A few Southern states not all lol, most Americans still have a mutual opinion on the majority of Souther states. The most popular ones ofc Texas and Florida, the other popular ones are Virginia, Carolinas and Tennessee. The rest aren’t super popular.
One-Warthog3063@reddit
According to the latest census, enough have moved to southern states to shift the number of members of the House of Representatives a bit.
PrpleSparklyUnicrn13@reddit
It definitely feels that way. A lot of my cousin in-laws have moved down south, followed by their parents when they retire. It’s less expensive to live there. But most of the parents were actually originally from there. The patriarch (their father) was military and sent to NY. When he left the military they all stayed here. So, in a way, they’re kinda moving back down south, as opposed to just migrating there.
AFartInAnEmptyRoom@reddit
If by southern you mean Florida, New Mexico, and Texas, then yes
visitor987@reddit
Yes Texas North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, and Virginia.
AndrewtheRey@reddit
Yes. A ton a people from Indiana moved to Florida or the Carolina’s when I was a kid. I remember when I switched to a more suburban middle class school district in high school, every year there would be several kids saying “I won’t be back next year, my family is moving to Florida/NC/SC”
dildozer10@reddit
Yes, the town I live in has seen a massive boom, housing developments are being built everywhere. The city I work in a half hour away has become the most populated city in my state, and it feels like every week a new housing development or warehouse is being built. I grew up outside of a small town where we only had 2 neighbors within yelling distance, my mother still lives in the same house which is now surrounded by 6 or 7 houses built within the last few years.
SharpResult0@reddit
Athens?
TheRandomestWonderer@reddit
Madison huh?
dildozer10@reddit
I don’t live in Madison but I drive through it everyday unfortunately.
bryku@reddit
Every so often there is a state that many people move to. It used to be new york, then California, then Washington, then California, and now it is Texas.
Thus happens on a smaller scale when 1 state is surrounded by a big population) state.
kacheow@reddit
Yeah, they actually let people build housing
stangAce20@reddit
The southwest gets a ton of snowbirds from the northern states every year.
California also gets a ton of heat refugees from Nevada/Arizona every summer lol
shamalonight@reddit
You can’t swing a dead cat without hitting a Yankee here is South Carolina.
carlton_sings@reddit
There was a migration out of California back in 2020-2022 but the trend has actually started reversing after the rollback of Roe v. Wade
mtnlady@reddit
Unfortunately. The traffic is getting so aggravating but everyone who moves here says "oh you don't know traffic!". How does that make the increase in traffic here any better? They also constantly complain about the pizza and bagels. Then open a restaurant that has your type of pizza and baegls?
tlonreddit@reddit
Unfortunately yes. Then they come and bitch here about our way of doing things and then get offended when you say “go back to New York”.
boldjoy0050@reddit
How can we make them go back even quicker? Maybe more gunshots and confederate flags?
tlonreddit@reddit
I think the second option might work. /s
HajdukNYM_NYI@reddit
Florida has become super red because every conservative in northern states ran down here during Covid. However Florida has become just as expensive now minus the state income tax and lower property taxes but some other expenses almost offsets that (depending on where in Florida but the urban centers are expensive as fuck)
oligarchyreps@reddit
every winter. They are called snow birds.
Willing_Fee9801@reddit
Austin, Texas has been growing like crazy from young people moving for work. Florida has always been a popular retirement destination, though I hear fewer people are moving there than in years past. But most often, people are trying to leave the south.
SBingo@reddit
Yes. I moved to Florida and almost everyone i meet here is from another state. Very few native Floridians.
I moved from South Carolina which has seen an explosion in people moving from elsewhere. Our state college was about 50% out of state students, so I would say it has been a long time coming.
People realize they can sell their house up north for $$$ and buy something bigger/nicer for less down south.
emory_2001@reddit
1.2 million people have moved to Florida since 2020.
zaynmaliksfuturewife@reddit
So many New Yorkers are moving to the Carolinas and Georgia specifically because of the cheaper cost of living and nice weather
JimNtexas@reddit
Our 435 congressional representatives are allocated based on the ten year census. I asked Grok how that worked out in 2022, when the results of the 2000 census were applied:
Based on the results of the 2020 Census, seven states lost one seat each in the U.S. House of Representatives due to population shifts. These states are:
Following the 2020 Census, six states gained seats in the U.S. House of Representatives due to population growth. Here’s the breakdown:
Southern states in bold.
These changes took effect with the 2022 elections, reflecting shifts in population as measured by the census, with Texas leading the pack due to its significant growth. The total number of House seats remains capped at 435, so gains in some states offset losses in others.
Not even Grock knows that will happen in 2030, but the best guesses I have seen are that California will lose about 3 seats, Texas will gain at least one, while Florida, South Carolina and North Carolina will gain seats.
Dio_Yuji@reddit
To some states. But others, like Louisiana and Mississippi, are losing population
HurtsCauseItMatters@reddit
Its still got a ton of retirees moving in though - doesn't help their economy though so everyone else is still leaving lol
ColumbiaWahoo@reddit
Net gain of people? Yes. Large? No. I personally moved for work since I couldn’t get hired anywhere else. I was willing to relocate anywhere in the US for a job in my field.
Wastedgent@reddit
And the first thing they do is complain that it's not like where they came from.
FloridianPhilosopher@reddit
Florida has always had a lot of transplants, but after COVID it went crazy.
DianneNettix@reddit
I think Hugh Langston wrote a play about it.
fowmart@reddit
They skip a lot of areas, so yes and no
BlackEyedAngel01@reddit
There is no significant difference in growth between southern states and the rest of the US https://worldpopulationreview.com/states
AlfredoAllenPoe@reddit
Your own source shows the sun belt growing faster than the rest of the country.
It's important to note that people typically are referring to the sun belt and not the American South when discussing this.
The Sun Belt is experiencing significantly more growth that the Midwest, PNW, Rocky Mountain region, Great Plains, or Northeast
Randvek@reddit
It’s more complicated than “Sun Belt good” though; Mississippi is actively losing population.
AlfredoAllenPoe@reddit
I specifically stated that NM, LA, and MS are losing population
Randvek@reddit
Yeah, so you should know why your entire attempt at a point was bad. 🫠
AlfredoAllenPoe@reddit
Not really.
It is factual to say that the sunbelt is experiencing rapid growth even if not every state in the sunbelt is.
Randvek@reddit
Yeah, and the economy is doing awesome, there are just a few industries that are exceptions lol
chriswaco@reddit
Yes.
In 1980 Florida's population was 9.7M. Today it's 23.3M. Compare to Michigan where it went from 9.2M to 10M over the same 45 years. Georgia went from 5.5M to 11.1M in the same timeframe.
There are several reasons for it:
1. Weather
2. Ubiquitous air conditioning
3. No income tax in Florida
4. Increase in the elderly population
random_agency@reddit
There was. But I've noticed some New Yorkers coming back not liking living in the southeast part of the US.
Quantity-Used@reddit
As an educated American, I would no longer want to live in many parts of the south. Many southern states have draconian social and educational policies that restrict personal liberties and what is allowed to be taught in schools. Primary schools are far behind when it comes to test scores and basic knowledge. Censorship of books and ideas is rampant, and some colleges can no longer teach subjects that include America’s history of systemic racism, and the role of gender in society. Large swaths of our history are being forcibly erased and functional literacy is dropping rapidly.
There is anecdotal evidence that people are leaving Florida and other southern states, not only because of repressive and underfunded public education, but because they are LGBTQ - or their children are - and they no longer feel safe or welcome.
My family is from the south and I have family there that I care deeply about. You could not pay me to live there.
AlfredoAllenPoe@reddit
The actual data from the census bureau shows that people are moving from blue states to red states (blue metros in red states really).
The main reasons are the cost of living in blue states, and the availability of jobs in red states.
Texas, N. Carolina, S. Carolina, Florida, and Tennessee had the most net migration and are all red states. California, New York, New Jersey, Illinois, and Massachusetts all had the worst net migration and are all blue states.
While some people are definitely moving from red to blue states because of politics, it does not come close to beating the number of people leaving blue states for red states.
https://www.resiclubanalytics.com/p/net-domestic-migration-which-states-are-gaining-and-losing-americans
Humble-End-2535@reddit
I could have pretty much written this comment. Grew up in South Carolina and never going back.
One thing (not in your first paragraph concerns) is that many Southern states have won a "race to the bottom" with low taxes and tax breaks to move businesses there. The bill will come due, for infrastructure, education, etc. And increasing population does raise the cost of living.
JoaquimFontes914@reddit
Yes, to the Carolinas, Texas and Florida in particular and mostly out of places with high taxes like New York, California and the like. It seems better weather and better cost of living seem to the be main drivers. Places like Florida are almost as expensive as New York now so I think that ship may have sailed.
WeathermanOnTheTown@reddit
Yes.
Following World War II, the U.S. population began to shift from older northern cities and toward the Sunbelt, a region consisting of about 15 states in the south and southwestern United States. Beginning in the 1950s, the region saw a boom in population as citizens were attracted to new economic opportunities tied to military bases and industrial, agricultural, and commercial development throughout the region. New technologies, such as air conditioning, made the warmer climate more bearable, and the passage of federal Civil Rights and Voting Rights legislation made the social and political climate more welcoming as well. Although the pace of growth has slowed in recent years, the Sunbelt remains the fastest growing region of the United States today.
Visible_Noise1850@reddit
100% true.
Local cities are even paying people to move here. I see it all the time on my local Facebook "What's Happening Xyz, Lmnop" page.
MrLongWalk@reddit
Yep, as the cost of living rises, people explore other options.
It’s like switching from eating eggs and fresh fruit in the morning to poptarts to save money.
AlfredoAllenPoe@reddit
Yes, large amounts of people are moving to the southern half of the US. This region is called the Sun Belt.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_Belt
People are moving to the Sun Belt primarily because of high cost of living in other areas and job availability in the Sun Belt.
You can see this through Net Migration data prepared by the US Census Bureau. The Sun Belt (except for NM, LA, and MS) are experiencing positive net migration while expensive coastal states and Illinois are shrinking or stagnant.
https://www.resiclubanalytics.com/p/net-domestic-migration-which-states-are-gaining-and-losing-americans
deadbeef56@reddit
The south is the largest and fastest-growing region of the country according to the US Census. The fastest growing states are almost all either southern or interior western. The west coast states CA, OR, WA plus the Northeast corridor combined are only about a third of the US population.
lawyerjsd@reddit
To some extent, yes. People are either moving to areas because of better weather or better opportunities. Since a lot of businesses have moved south, a lot of people have followed them south. A countervailing trend is the number of people leaving California due to the high cost of housing (it's straight up horrific, and I say that as a homeowner in California).
11b87@reddit
I moved from Georgia to South Alabama. Cheaper rural living and less people.
roll_wave@reddit
No, the southern US has a super low population outside of FL, GA, and TX. Also has much lower development, standards of living, healthcare, education, etc.
Majority of Americans live on West Coast, Mid West, and Northeast Corridor. And then FL/TX.
NCSU_252@reddit
Is this not a pointless distinction? First, it's not really true. NC is basically the same size as GA, and NC, VA, and Tennessee are in the top 15 by population. Also, every region of the US has a super low population if you don't count the states with high population. It's like saying the northeast has a super low population outside of NY, NJ, and PA, and MA.
Again, isn't this pointless? Big surprise, the majority of Americans live in the majority of America. The southeast has a higher population that the west coast, midwest, and northeast individually.
Responsible_Trash_40@reddit
Both Carolinas and DC are growing rapidly
gravelpi@reddit
Generally, yes. With air conditioning becoming common, it's not as (physically) miserable to live in the south compared to 75 years ago.
Narrow_Tennis_2803@reddit
There has been domestic migration to southern states, in particular to the metro areas. Florida and Texas are the big ones, but the Carolinas, Georgia and Tennessee are also getting their fair share. A lot of it has to do with job opportunities for younger people or warmer weather for retirees.
HorseFeathersFur@reddit
We are a very mobile society.
NY, California and Illinois have all experienced population declines while Texas, Florida and South Carolina experienced the most growth.
To answer your question: partly.
TheBlazingFire123@reddit
Yes