New study shows more people moving to S.C. than nearly every other state

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It appears more people are moving to South Carolina compared to almost anywhere else in the rest of the country, according to a newly-published study by United Van Lines. They all just love the Palmetto State.

It’s not a surprise that people are moving long-distance more than ever. Much of the population decided to move away from familiarity or have taken the opportunity to pursue new avenues.

Last year, more residents were moving to South Carolina, rather than moving out of the state, with over 10,000 more move-ins than folks leaving.

The top-10 inbound states are:

  1. Texas
  2. Florida
  3. South Carolina
  4. North Carolina
  5. Georgia
  6. Tennessee
  7. Nevada
  8. Maine
  9. Delaware
  10. Idaho

The top outbound states are:

  1. California
  2. New York
  3. Illinois
  4. Pennsylvania
  5. Massachusetts
  6. Washington
  7. Colorado
  8. Indiana
  9. Michigan
  10. Wisconsin

According to address-change-request data from the United States Postal Service, permanent address change requests jumped 3.3% to over 10.2 million between 2019 and 2020. 2021 saw similar results with only a slight drop in volume from 2020. The USPS data suggests that many are leaving large cities and chilly states for less congested areas and warmer climes.

According to data in the 2021 United Van Lines annual national movers study, the most common reason, by far, for moving during the years leading up to last was work-related. Although still at the top of the list, moving for work dropped nearly 19% from 2019 to 2021, while moving closer to family saw a significant increase in popularity and now ranks just .7% behind work-related moving.

Retirement and lifestyle moves saw only slight percentage increases last year, but both are up nearly 5% over 2015. Increases in retirement moving will likely continue to rise as the number of persons reaching age 65 increases yearly, according to a May 2021 report from the Administration for Community Living.

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