Americans Moving Out of Cities at a Rapid Pace
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Americans are on the move--about 16% of the population relocated between March 1999 and March 2000--but they are not making central cities their final destination, according to a U.S. Census Bureau population survey published last week.
About 56% of the 43 million Americans who moved relocated within the same county, and 20% moved to another county in the same state. Continuing a decade-old migration pattern, residents moved out of central city areas, resulting in a new loss there of 3.2 million people.
About 52% of those surveyed said they moved for housing-related reasons, including the desire to own their own homes or the chance to move up to better neighborhoods.
The South, which boasts a strong economy, saw the greatest gain in residents--227,000, while the Northeast lost about 252,000 people.
The West gained 43,000. The figures don’t include international immigration.
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