Florida is the No. 2 U.S. Growth State for 2016, according to the latest U-Haul migration trends report.
Florida rose two spots from its No. 4 growth ranking for 2015. Its year-over-year arrivals of one-way U-Haul truck rentals held steady while its departures dropped 1 percent last year.
Arrivals accounted for 50.4 percent of U-Haul traffic in Florida in 2016. Kissimmee, Brandon, Miami, Melbourne, Bradenton and Boca Raton paced the net gain of one-way U-Haul trucks. Kissimmee is the No. 10 U-Haul U.S. Growth City for locations with a population of more than 50,000. Brandon ranks 14th and Miami 17th.
Follow the Top 10 Growth States daily countdown through Feb. 3 on Twitter @uhaul. View other migration trends reports, including the U.S. Growth Cities release, at myuhaulstory.com.
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.
While migration trends do not correlate directly to population or economic growth, U-Haul growth data is an effective gauge of how well cities are attracting and maintaining residents.
Bayfront National Park in Florida, the U-Haul No. 2 Growth State for 2016. Courtesy of Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau
“There has been a large migration into Central Florida,” says Rod Baldwin, U-Haul Company of Orlando president. “Osceola County has been one of the fastest growing counties in the state. It’s funny because it was pretty rundown for some time, but it’s caught fire and we’re running with it. We are in the process of building a 70,000-square-foot store in Kissimmee.”
U-Haul has several stores under construction and intends to add more than 60 new independent businesses to its neighborhood dealer network in the Orlando area over the next two years. But that’s far from the only region where do-it-yourself movers are flocking.
“The (Metro) Tampa area has received many in-bound trucks over the past year, and many of them have been our 20- and 26-foot trucks,” says Bob Magyar, U-Haul Company of Tampa president. “This usually means families are moving into the area, typically with children and from larger homes.”
Find U-Haul stores and neighborhood dealers in Florida at uhaul.com/locations.
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.
What They are Saying about Florida
“I see signs of growth every day. The construction in downtown Miami is picking up and the Hispanic neighborhoods are growing like crazy. The Miami population has increased tremendously from the Latin American immigrants. They are migrating from Cuba, Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and even Brazil. The culture in Miami is so diverse, which is part of the reason it’s an attractive city to live in. The food is great, the music has soul and the people are the backbone.” — Rainel Gonzalez, U-Haul Company of Miami president
“This area is seeing a lot of growth due to the new aerospace program. We are gearing up for a replacement for the shuttle. Melbourne and Palm Bay also have a lot of defense contractors. People are flocking to the huge residential communities because they are close to the job growth. Brevard County truly is one of the best places to live. It is a paradise with a constant sea breeze. … We have a new store, U-Haul of Palm Bay, that’s 109,000 square feet on 8.5 acres. This is a huge thing for us. We will be introducing U-Box moving and self-storage containers, self-storage and hitches. We will have everything at that store.” — Cal Connor, U-Haul Company of Eastern Florida president
“Tampa is seeing an increased number of high-rise apartment and condo buildings being built to provide in-city living. People want to reduce commute time to and from work and working in the city allows more time for family. I am not surprised by the rankings as we have been receiving many large trucks and our self-storage facilities are also well over 90 percent occupied.” — Bob Magyar, U-Haul Company of Tampa president
U-Haul Top 10 Growth States of 2016
10. Arkansas
9. Vermont
8. Louisiana
7. Idaho
6. Maine
5. Missouri
4. Wisconsin
3. Minnesota
2. Florida
Be sure to follow the growth state countdown in the following days here on myuhaulstory.com!
