U-Haul Migration Trends: FLORIDA No. 2 Growth State for 2017

PHOENIX and MIAMI, Jan. 8, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Florida was the No. 2 Growth State for 2017, according to U-Haul data analyzing the past year's U.S. migration trends.

Year-over-year arrivals of one-way U-Haul truck rentals rose 8 percent while departures rose 9 percent from Florida's 2016 numbers. Some of the state's considerable increase in overall U-Haul transactions can likely be attributed to an active hurricane season.

Despite the spike in outbound traffic, arriving trucks still accounted for 50.2 percent of all one-way U-Haul traffic in Florida to keep it entrenched as a top growth state. Florida also held the No. 2 growth ranking for 2016 after climbing from the No. 4 ranking for 2015.

Growth States are calculated by the net gain of one-way U-Haul truck rentals entering a state versus leaving a state during a calendar year. Migration trends data is compiled from more than 1.7 million one-way U-Haul truck rental transactions that occur annually.

Texas was the No. 1 Growth State for the second year in a row. Arkansas, South Carolina and Tennessee rounded out the top five, and North Carolina ranked seventh, continuing a strong growth movement in the Southeast. California overtook Illinois on the list as the biggest net-loss state.

View the complete top 50 rankings along with more migration trends reports, including U.S. Growth Cities, at myuhaulstory.com.

While migration trends do not correlate directly to population or economic growth, U-Haul growth data is an effective gauge of how well states and cities are attracting and maintaining residents.

Miami, Kissimmee, Brandon, St. Cloud, Melbourne, Davenport, Boca Raton, Bradenton, Ft. Lauderdale and Panama City Beach paced Florida's net gain of one-way U-Haul trucks. Find U-Haul stores and neighborhood dealers in Florida at uhaul.com/locations.

"I'm not surprised the Florida is the No. 2 Growth State, even after the hurricanes in 2017," said Cal Conner, U-Haul Company of Eastern Florida president. "We're Floridians – we don't leave. We sustained lots of damage, but our communities stick together. U-Haul banded together and gave free self-storage to affected residents. We also did some volunteer work in conjunction with city efforts. We are still cleaning up, but Florida is a close-knit state. Our neighbors are family."

U-Haul is the authority on migration trends thanks to its expansive network that blankets all 50 states and 10 Canadian provinces. The geographical coverage from more than 21,000 U-Haul locations provides a comprehensive overview of where people are moving like no one else in the industry.

The arrival of U-Haul Truck Share 24/7 is revolutionizing the moving industry through its more convenient, more secure way to pick up and return a truck. U-Haul live verification technology allows rental transactions to be carried out entirely on a smartphone at any hour – day or night. There are no membership fees. Simply visit uhaul.com to create an online account.

What They're Saying about Florida

"In Orlando, we have construction everywhere. The major freeways and highways are widening, and a lot of businesses are opening. There's a certain comfort level for people moving here. They know there are jobs and new housing communities." — Miguel Caminos, U-Haul Company of Orlando president

"Doral grew from 12,000 people in 2010 to approximately 58,000 in 2016. Miami grew approximately 13 percent from 2010 to 2016. You can see the growth in new businesses coming to the area and in the real estate development. It is hard to believe that Miami is still growing when the real estate market is higher than other parts of the country, as well as the cost of living being high. But the answer may be found in the fact that South Florida pretty much has an eternal summer, and Floridians do not pay state taxes." — Rainel Gonzalez, U-Haul Company of Miami president

"New home development, apartments and condominiums are being built at a fast pace. New communities being built in Odessa, just north of Tampa, have increased our demand for U-Haul products and services to serve new residents moving in." — Bob Magyar, U-Haul Company of Tampa president

About U-Haul

Since 1945, U-Haul has been the No. 1 choice of do-it-yourself movers, with a network of more than 21,000 locations across all 50 states and 10 Canadian provinces. U-Haul Truck Share 24/7 now offers customers access to U-Haul trucks every hour of every day through the self-service options on their internet-connected mobile devices. U-Haul customers' patronage has enabled the U-Haul fleet to grow to more than 150,000 trucks, 112,000 trailers and 40,000 towing devices. U-Haul offers more than 581,000 rooms and more than 51 million square feet of self-storage space at owned and managed facilities throughout North America. U-Haul is the largest installer of permanent trailer hitches in the automotive aftermarket industry and is the largest retailer of propane in the U.S.

Contact:

Jeff Lockridge
Sebastien Reyes
E-mail: publicrelations@uhaul.com
Phone: 602-760-4941
Website: uhaul.com

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SOURCE U-Haul