It’s the real life “Escape From New York.”
The dreams of making it big in the Big Apple have gone the way of the dodo.
This year, more residents are moving out of New York and New Jersey than any other state and heading for greener pastures to the South and Pacific Northwest, according to United Van Lines’ 2025 National Movers Study.
For the eighth year in a row, the Garden State topped the list with 62% of its residents fleeing, while New York followed close behind with 58%.
This Northeast exodus was part of a fundamental shift in American Migration Patterns, per the moving company, which noted that people’s choice to uproot was dictated by the desire to be closer to family (29%), followed by the job market (26%).
“For most Americans, interstate relocation is no longer a linear calculation; it’s a complex decision balancing multiple competing factors,” said Michael A. Stoll, Economist and Professor in The Department of Public Policy at The University of California, Los Angeles, in a statement.
He claimed that the shift reflected a preference for “lower-density living” that began during COVID — a time when many New Yorkers fled to smaller havens in Texas and Florida, in droves.
The survey, which has been conducted since 1977, was based on household moves handled by the network of the company’s parent group, UniGroup, within the 48 contiguous states and Washington, D.C.
They then ranked states based on the inbound and outbound percentages of total moves in each.
New Jersey was granted the title of the most abandoned state reportedly because while young professionals and families often move there to start a new life, older residents are packing their bags and fleeing as fast as they can say “retirement.”
The same rule held for New York: ambitious job seekers run there while the state “simultaneously loses more people motivated by retirement, affordability and lifestyle changes.”
This comes after hundreds of thousands of Gothamites vowed that they would abandon the Big Apple if socialist Zohran Mamdani were sworn in as mayor, potentially setting the stage for the largest flight in US history. The inbound hizzoner is slated to be in just moments after midnight on New Year’s Day, below City Hall Park in an abandoned subway stop.
It’s also no secret that rising prices have been a major issue with average and median rents once again hitting record new highs in Manhattan in November.
In third place, to no one’s surprise, was California (58%), which has been similarly racked by high inflation and unemployment — issues attributed to Governor Gavin Newsom’s progressive policies.
Top outbound states in 2025:
- New Jersey
- New York
- California
- North Dakota
- Colorado
- Mississippi
- Massachusetts
Where are these state refugees fleeing? Westward Ho.
Oregon topped the list when it came to inbound immigrants (65%), like a modern-day version of the state’s eponymous trail.
This migration was attributed to the Beaver State’s growing status as a destination for migrants (36%) seeking opportunities in the growing tech and health care sectors.
Oregon was followed by West Virginia (62%) and South Carolina (61%), proving that the birds aren’t the only ones flying South for the winter.
United Van Lines attributed the trend to “Americans’ broader shift toward smaller cities and towns — moving outside major metros where housing is more affordable.”
“The data reveals Americans are seeking a different pace of life, and destinations like Oregon, the Carolinas and the South are delivering it,” Eily Cummings, Vice President of Corporate Communications at United Van Lines, said.
Top inbound states in 2025:
- Oregon
- West Virginia
- South Carolina
- Delaware
- Minnesota
- Idaho
- North Carolina
- Arkansas
- Alabama
- Nevada
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