"Why do people pick up and move from one city to another?"
That's the question posed by Forbes in a recent article, and the popular business magazine tapped Realtor.com to find out where folks are moving to and where they are coming from.
The online real estate search site listed 10 metropolitan regions that have seen the highest estimated population growth in the past couple of years, and that list includes Jacksonville.
According to the article, the River City has seen a 5 percent increase in the past two years, placing it at No. 2 most attractive destination for migrants, behind Austin, Texas. And most of those migrants — more than 13 percent, according to census data — come from the Miami and Orlando regions.
Also, based on Realtor.com search data, Jacksonville has drawn a lot of interest in New York and New Jersey.
“Part of that formula has been the job sector,” Javier Vivas, manager of economic research for Realtor.com, was quoted as saying. “In Florida, where you see a lot of cities where some of the demand is coming from outside, I think Jacksonville is a bit of an exception where you see people wanting to move there for jobs.”
Migrants to Jacksonville, the article read, include younger professionals who find the cost of living and employment opportunities attractive.
“They’re finding the square-footage," Vivas said. "They’re finding value homes in that market and then they have a decent job to go along with it, and that’s really driving population.”
The list also includes No. 10 Portland, No. 4 Nashville and No. 3 Las Vegas.
Vince Kong can be reached at vkong@wjct.org, 904-358-6349 or on Twitter @teamvincek
