Surprise! People are Moving Out of Connecticut

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United Van Lines, which moved about 110,000 people from one state to another last year, keeps tabs on where folks are going and where they are leaving. And it will come as a surprise to no one that more people are packing in Connecticut than unpacking in the state.

Connecticut ranked fourth among states with the highest percentage of outbound moves, at just over 57 percent, meaning roughly four people moved out for every three who moved in. More specifically, United had 1,229 customers move into the state, and 1,637 move out.

Only New York, New Jersey and Illinois had more lopsided numbers. Illinois, at the top of the list, had 63.4 percent of relocations occuring with the state in the rearview mirror, meaning there were nearly two outbound moves for every inbound move.

At the other end of the scale, Vermont was the most popular of the 48 contiguous states, with more than two inbound moves for every outbound move. Other popular states: Oregon, Idaho, Nevada and South Dakota – each of which had more than three inbound moves for every two outbound moves.

In Connecticut, 55 percent of inbound moves were made for job reasons, compared with 40 percent of outbound moves. About 9 percent of new residents cited retirement as the reason for the move, compared with 24 percent of movers leaving the state.

The data, of course, are not a complete picture of interstate relocation, capturing only those moves involving one professional mover. That could skew the data by over-representing wealthier movers – overstating the number of moves out of wealthier states.

But the numbers should still set off alarms in those states with significant imbalances – including Connecticut, which has been on the high end of the moving company’s list every year since 2011.

Click the map below to see data on each state’s moves. States shaded green had a net inflow of movers, with bright green states having at least 55 percent of their moves inbound. Red states had a net outflow, with bright red states having at least 55 percent of their moves outbound.

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