California ranked last on U-Haul Growth Index for the fifth year in a row
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Americans flocked to southern states in 2024, according to U-Haul's Growth Index, with South Carolina topping the list of moving destinations for the first time.
Arrivals accounted for 51.7% of all one-way U-Haul traffic in and out of the state, according to the report published Thursday.
Texas, which reigned as the top U-Haul growth state three years in a row, fell to second place last year. North Carolina ranked third.
"The Carolinas are a great place to live," said Jason Hardin, U-Haul's area vice president for the Carolinas and Georgia. "We have southern charm. We have a lot of history here. We got beaches. We have mountains. We have low cost of living."
Coastal living without the hefty price tag found in other states, combined with warm weather and southern charm could be motivating people to move to the Carolinas, U-Haul executive Jason Hardin said. (Visions of America/Joseph Sohm/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
The outlook was less sunny in the Golden State, which ranked dead last on U-Haul's Growth Index for the fifth year in a row.
U-Haul calculates each state's net gain (or loss) of customers using one-way rentals. The company said it sees more than 2.5 million one-way truck, trailer and moving container transactions each year across all 50 states.
Transactions from 2024 "reaffirm customer tendencies that have been pronounced for some time," U-Haul International president John "J.T." Taylor said in a statement.
"Migration to the Southeast and Southwest continues as families gauge their cost of living, job opportunities, quality of life and other factors," Taylor said in the statement. "Out-migration remains prevalent for a number of markets across the Northeast, Midwest and West Coast — and particularly California."
Florida and Tennessee ranked fourth and fifth, respectively, among the leading growth states. Arizona, Washington, Indiana, Utah and Idaho rounded out the top 10.
Americans flocked to southern states in 2024, according to U-Haul's annual Growth Index. (Photo via Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)
AMERICANS FLOCKING FROM MAJOR METROPOLITAN CITIES TO THESE SOUTHERN 'EX BURBS'
U-Haul rankings don't correlate directly to population or economic growth — after three years of decline, California's population grew last year, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates.
However, the company says its Growth Index offers a look at how well states and cities are attracting and retaining residents.
Hardin said many of the people he sees moving to the Carolinas are coming from the Northeast seeking warmer weather, and from California in search of a lower cost of living.
"There's no reason you wouldn't want to move here," Hardin added in a video shared by U-Haul.
Hardin also highlighted the Carolinas' abundance of entertainment and sports opportunities, as well as a surge in manufacturing, healthcare and tech jobs.
In August, Meta announced plans to build its first South Carolina data center. The next month, Google announced a $3.3 billion plan to expand an existing data center and add two new campuses, according to local news reports.
The state has also been trying to position itself as a global powerhouse in electric vehicle and battery manufacturing.
Hannah Ray Lambert is an associate producer/writer with Fox News Digital Originals.
