Americans moving at lowest rate in decades: Census Bureau analysis

(NewsNation) — The percentage of Americans who move is at its lowest rate in recent history. And new research suggests the rate will stay low for quite some time.

Migration hovered at around 20% from just after World War II through the 1980s. Since then, it’s been on a steady decline to just 8.4% in 2021. The latest rate, taken from U.S. Census Bureau statistics, is 8.7% in 2022.

William Frey, a senior demographer at the Brookings Institution, tells Axios that several factors have collided to bring down the moving rate:

• Younger people are living with their parents longer and delaying marriage
• Older people, especially those in homes that are paid off, are less likely to move
• Remote work means fewer people have to move to a new job
• Two-income households make it tougher for both parties to find new jobs in new cities
• Sky-high housing prices inhibit the ability to upgrade housing
• Residual effects of the COVID pandemic

Frey’s analysis revealed one big anomaly. Local moves, defined as moving within the same county, fell to below 5% in the 2021-2022 survey period. That’s down from nearly 9% in 2010. But long-distance moves are up slightly to about 1.5%, following four years of steady decline.