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Monday, January 8, 2024

7 Florida Cities Dominated 2023 U.S. Growth

 By Amy Connolly

Seven Florida locales dominated the 2023 U-Haul Growth Index, indicating the Sunshine State continues to be a sought-after destination.

Seven Florida locales dominated the 2023 U-Haul Growth Index, indicating the Sunshine State continues to be a sought-after destination.

PHOENIX – Seven regions in Florida lead in the highest number of one-way U-Haul moves in 2023, underscoring the Sunshine State’s continued allure and appeal.

The U-Haul Growth Index found Florida represented 28% of the top 25 growth cities – the seventh consecutive year the state has had the most cities represented on the list.

  1. Palm Bay-Melbourne
  2. Ocala
  3. Charleston-North Charleston, S.C.
  4. Sarasota-Bradenton
  5. Austin, Texas
  6. College Station-Bryan, Texas
  7. Charlotte, N.C.
  8. Huntsville, Ala.
  9. Dallas
  10. Myrtle Beach-North Myrtle Beach, S.C.
  11. Kissimmee-St. Cloud
  12. Panama City-Panama City Beach
  13. North Port
  14. Boise, Idaho
  15. Wake Forest, N.C.
  16. Conroe, Texas
  17. Knoxville, Tenn.
  18. Surprise, Ariz.
  19. Auburn-Opelika, Ala.
  20. Lakeland
  21. Murfreesboro, Tenn.
  22. Wilmington, N.C.
  23. Queen Creek, Ariz.
  24. Henderson, Nev.
  25. Nampa, Idaho

In the Palm Bay-Melbourne market, 54.7% of all one-way U-Haul traffic was arriving compared to 45.3% departing in 2023. Ocala, the No. 1 growth city in 2022, fell back one spot in the latest rankings.

“Growth in the Palm Bay-Melbourne area has been increasing at an explosive rate,” Cal Conner, U-Haul Company of Eastern Florida president, said. “The Space Coast has many companies investing in this region and creating jobs such as Embraer, SpaceX, Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin and L3Harris Technologies. We have a low cost of living compared to many of the northern cities people have left. Add to that our fantastic year-round climate, and you can see why Palm Bay-Melbourne is such a desirable area to live.”

U-Haul calculates growth cities by each city’s net gain (or loss) of one-way equipment from customer transactions in a calendar year. The U-Haul Growth Index is compiled from more than 2.5 million one-way transactions that occur annually across the U.S. and Canada. Neighboring cities in U-Haul markets are often packaged together for migration trends purposes.

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