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THE EFFECT that the COVID-19 pandemic had on the economy caused a huge wave of internal migration. Americans seem to have learned a lesson and are now looking to relocate to the states with the best economic and individual liberties indicators, with Florida leading by a wide margin.
The financial advisory company SmartAsset conducted a study analyzing internal migration patterns between 2019 and 2020, limiting itself to identifying which was the preferred destination for American families with incomes above $200,000 annually.
The result is revealing. The region known as the Sun Belt, which stretches from the Atlantic coast of the Southeast to the Pacific coast of the Southwest, appears to be the most attractive to wealthier Americans. Eight of the top ten states are located in that region, even if only partially. Notably, seven of the top ten states in the study are governed by Republicans.
The top ten most attractive states
One of the factors that determined the attractiveness of these states according to the study is the tax burden. Of the nine states in the country that do not tax income at the state level, four appear in the top 10. Americans prefer to live in states with lower taxes and warm weather.
The top 10 preferred states according to the analysis are the following:
- Florida, governed by Republican Ron DeSantis, received 20,263 new homes.
- Texas, governed by Republican Greg Abbott, received 5,356 new homes.
- Arizona, governed by Republican Doug Ducey, received 5,268 new homes
- North Carolina, governed by Democrat Roy Cooper, received 4,713 new homes
- South Carolina, governed by Republican Henry McMaster, received 3,967 new homes.
- Tennessee, governed by Republican Bill Lee, received 2,743 new homes.
- Colorado, governed by Democrat Jared Polis, received 2,624 new homes
- Nevada, governed by Democrat Steve Sisolak, received 2,331 new homes
- Idaho, governed by Republican Brad Little, received 2,055 new homes
- Utah, governed by Republican Spencer Cox, received 1,503 new homes
On the other hand, the study also determines which states have the largest influx of wealthy families moving to other states. These are the Democratic states of New York and California, with nearly 20,000 American families fleeing annually. That figure is almost double that of Illinois, the third state with the highest outflow.
To rank the data, SmartAsset examined the 2019 and 2020 tax returns of households with adjusted gross incomes of $200,000 or more and compared the detailed location on the 2019 return to the 2020 return. Each state was then ranked according to the net income of high-income households.
Tomás Lugo, journalist and writer. Born in Venezuela and graduated in Social Communication. Has written for international media outlets. Currently living in Colombia // Tomás Lugo, periodista y articulista. Nacido en Venezuela y graduado en Comunicación Social. Ha escrito para medios internacionales. Actualmente reside en Colombia.