California Again Ranks First for Resident Exodus

For the fourth year in a row, California reflected the largest net loss of one-way movers in the annual U-Haul Growth Index, while Texas netted the largest number of move-ins in one-way U-Haul equipment in 2023. Other bottom-five states for growth are Michigan, New Jersey, Illinois and Massachusetts. New York ranks 43rd.

Florida came in second behind Texas for move-ins, according to U-Haul. The U-Haul Growth Index is compiled from more than 2.5 million one-way U-Haul truck, trailer and U-Box moving container transactions that occur annually across the U.S. and Canada.

“While one-way transactions in 2023 remained below the record-breaking levels we witnessed immediately following the pandemic, we continued to see many of the same geographical trends from U-Haul customers moving between states,” said John “J.T.” Taylor, U-Haul International president.

“Migration to states in the Southeast and Southwest is still very pronounced,” he added. “Demand for one-way equipment out of certain markets in the Northeast, Midwest and West Coast mirrors what we have seen during recent moving cycles.”

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About Paul Bubny

Paul Bubny serves as Senior Content Director for Connect Commercial Real Estate, a role to which he brings 16-plus years’ experience covering the commercial real estate industry and 30-plus years in business-to-business journalism. In this capacity, he oversees daily operations while also reporting on both local/regional markets and national trends, covering individual transactions across all property types, as well as delving into broader subject matter. He produces 7-10 daily news stories per day and works with the Connect team and clients to develop longer-form content, ranging from Q&As to thought-leadership pieces. Prior to joining Connect, Paul was Managing Editor for both Real Estate Forum and GlobeSt.com at American Lawyer Media, where he oversaw operations at both publications while also producing daily news and feature-length articles. His tenure in B2B publishing stretches back into the print era, and he has served as Editor in Chief on four national trade publications. Since 1999, Paul has volunteered as the newsletter editor of passenger rail advocacy groups (one national, one local).

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