Crime, the economic situation and the high tax burden are causing Americans to leave certain states in search of greater personal and financial security. According to a report by moving company Allied Van Lines, Illinois is the state that suffered the greatest loss of residents in 2022, followed by California, New Jersey, Michigan and Pennsylvania. All of them governed by the Democratic Party.
On the other side of the scale, Arizona, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee and Texas added the most new residents from other states last year.
"Those who could afford to relocate, moved south and settled along the Sunbelt, which offered stronger economic opportunities and a lower cost of living than the West Coast or Northeast," the report read. It also stated that the total number of moves fell by 20% compared to the previous year.
It is the fourth consecutive year that Illinois has suffered the greatest flight of Americans. Of all its residents who moved, more than 65% went out of state. In just 12 years, Illinois has lost about 250,000 residents, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau.
New York: the city with the largest exodus of residents
Although Illinois is the state with the highest number of moves to other states, none of its cities lost as many residents as New York, which saw the average price of homes far exceed the national median price.
After New York, there were three cities in California (Anaheim, San Diego and Riverside). The next city was Illinois' own Chicago, of which the report stated: "It is an outlier among outbound cities this year, the only one with a housing market below the national average, a sign other factors (e.g. crime, economy) play a more significant role in its migration patterns."
