Americans Are Abandoning High-Tax States in Droves
Americans are on the move, according to the United Van Lines’ Mover Study, and researchers want to know where they’re going and why.
“As the nation’s largest household goods mover, our study allows us to identify the most and least popular states for residential relocation throughout the country, year after year,” said Eily Cummings, director of corporate communications at United Van Lines. “These findings accurately reflect not only where Americans are moving to and from, but also the reasons why.”
Apparently, the burden of higher tax rates is hitting some American folks too hard: High-tax states are reportedly seeing large outflows of residents.
New York, New Jersey and Connecticut are especially feeling the blow. More Americans are leaving these states than moving in.
“About 0.47 percent of people have migrated out of New York, which is the highest of any of the 50 states … it’s like 40,000 people,” Dolly Lenz Real Estate Managing Director Jenny Lenz told FOX Business.
Additionally, the expectation for new taxes in states that used to be popular destinations for Americans are also losing new residents.
People now prefer Florida, Texas and Nevada over California due to the state’s consideration of an estate tax.
“Unlike a few decades ago, retirees are leaving California, instead choosing other states in the Pacific West and Mountain West,” Michael Stoll, economist and professor in the Department of Public Policy at the University of California, Los Angeles, said to United Van Lines. “We’re also seeing young professionals migrating to vibrant, metropolitan economies, like Washington, D.C., and Seattle.”
Topping the charts of the 2018 National Movers Study are New Jersey, Illinois, Connecticut and New York for highest outbound rates.
Out of all movers in New Jersey, nearly 68% of them were leaving, putting the state at No. 1 on the list. The state has also been on the United Van Lines’ Mover Study top 10 for the last 10 years.
Ranking third, Connecticut reported 62% of movers leaving the state. FOX Business stated that Connecticut “recently proposed broadening its sales tax, increasing its capital gains tax and imposing levies on sugary drinks and plastic bags,” which could be the reason for the high outbound migration.
New York, the highest-tax state, also had about 61.5% of movers abandoning the state.
As residents were on the out, researchers cited their main reasons for leaving were “lower costs of living, state budgetary challenges, weather, and job growth” as they headed to lower-tax states in the South and West.
On the flip side, the study found that Vermont, Oregon, Idaho, and Nevada are ranked the highest states for inbound movers.
Additionally, “Idaho saw the largest influx of new residents desiring a lifestyle change (25.95 percent), and more people flocked to New Mexico for retirement than any other state (42.74 percent).”
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