Kevin Bessler is listed as a “staff reporter” for The Center Square which provided the headline item about top states to leave and move to for 2024 shown in Part I of today’s report with analysis. Part II includes information from U-Haul while Part I includes insights from North American Van Lines plus other sources. From the added information directly from the North American Van Lines’ annual report for 2024 was this statement about reasons people give for moving. “It should come as no surprise that states with higher income tax rates see increased rates of emigration; many of the top outbound states have the highest tax rates in the country. California residents have long endured some of the highest tax rates in the United States. Higher taxes reduce overall income and leave fewer funds for discretionary spending and investments. High property taxes (on top of already high property costs) further encourage Golden State residents to look elsewhere.”

There are more common-sense facts, insights, plus analysis potentially useful for MHVille marketers as well as for politicos and other researchers in Part III.

 

Part I – Per The Center Square to MHProNews is the following

Moving company data shows Illinois lost the second most residents in 2024

By Kevin Bessler | The Center Square 2.13.2025

(The Center Square) – Migration data from a moving company shows Illinois is near the top of the list for states with the most outbound moves.

The 2024 North American Van Lines Annual Migration Report shows Illinois was second in the country for outbound moves behind only California. In Illinois, 60% of moves were outbound while 40% were inbound. It is the first time in 10 years Illinois didn’t lead the country in outbound moves.

The company said it examined several metrics, including researching population reports and getting input from top companies in the moving industry to gain insider knowledge.

Marketing director Ryan Cox said ever since Gov. J.B. Pritzker locked down Illinois with COVID-19 restrictions in 2020, Illinoisans have been flocking to one specific area of the country.

“The top inbound states are North and South Carolina, Idaho, Tennessee and Georgia, and a lot of people from Illinois are actually moving to the Carolinas,” said Cox.

Cox said high taxes and cost of living prompts people to move, especially when it comes to housing.

“I think quality of life is one of the top concerns for people moving,” said Cox. “With household prices skyrocketing in Illinois, they are finding more reasonable, affordable housing.”

Property taxes are a main driver to prompt people to pack up and leave. Illinois has the second highest property taxes in the country. According to Rocket Mortgage, at 2.08% of the home’s value each year, the owner of a median priced home in Illinois of $432,500 will pay just over $9,000 a year. In comparison, a homeowner in South Carolina pays 0.57% for a median priced home of $383,900. That comes out to $2,175 per year.

According to the report, the top inbound cities were Greenville, South Carolina, Charlotte, North Carolina, and Nashville, Tennessee.

The most popular day to move in 2024 was Friday, and the most popular month was August.

—

Part II – Data from U-Haul’s Annual 2024 Report

U-Haul Growth States of 2024: South Carolina Tops List for First Time

 

Part III – Additional Information with More MHProNews Analysis and Commentary 

In no particular order of importance are the following insights.

1. According to North American Van Lines Migration Report 2024:

Top Cities in 2024

The most moved-to states in 2024 were Idaho, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee and Georgia. Among the top inbound states in the Moving Migration Report, some cities saw a higher influx of new residents than others. These cities offer a higher quality of life, family-friendly attractions and affordability. The top cities in 2024 include:

• • Greenville, South Carolina, is a fast-growing city with a thriving job market and a down-to-earth community culture. The weather is mild and enjoyable year-round, meaning residents can enjoy fun-filled outdoor activities like visiting the zoo, golf clubs, kayaking and more.

• • Charlotte, North Carolina, has seen significant growth over the last three years. The city has a low cost of living and great weather. There’s also a ton of family-friendly events, activities and breathtaking green views surrounding the city.

• • Nashville, Tennessee, is a vibrant city with a rich history and many fun-filled attractions. It is known as the Music City and attracts music lovers and artists alike. Residents can also expect a low cost of living and affordable housing.

• • Raleigh, North Carolina is known and loved for its southern charm. The city hosts annual bluegrass festivals, cultural events and local activities. The school districts are highly ranked, and many suburbs have a low crime rate, making Raleigh a top choice for families.

• • Dallas, Texas, has everything you need: great restaurants, endless- family-friendly activities and various fun-filled attractions. There are tons of great places to visit, including the Meyerson Symphony Center and the Perot Museum of Nature and Science. The cost of living is also relatively low, and there are many job opportunities available in various industries.

2) Per the data generated by U-Haul, 7 of the bottom ten states from the data shown in Part II are so-called “blue” or primarily Democratic states. Two are swing states and only one is a ‘red’ state or primarily a Republican run state.  The annotation for “red” “blue” or “swing” states that follows are by MHProNews.

40.	COLORADO (9) [BLUE]
41.	CONNECTICUT (42) [BLUE]
42.	MARYLAND (44) [BLUE]
43.	MICHIGAN (46) [SWING]
44.	LOUISIANA (45) [RED]
45.	ILLINOIS (48) [BLUE]
46.	PENNSYLVANIA (38) [SWING]
47.	NEW YORK (43) [BLUE]
48.	NEW JERSEY (47) [BLUE]
49.	MASSACHUSETTS (49) [BLUE]
50.	CALIFORNIA (50) [BLUE]

2023 growth rankings in parentheses

3) Almost the opposite is true for the top ten states. 7 of the most ‘inbound move’ states are primary Republican run, two are swing states, and only one is a mainly Democratic run state.  The Red, Blue, or Swing annotations are added by MHProNews.

 

1.	SOUTH CAROLINA (4) [RED]
2.	TEXAS (1) [RED]
3.	NORTH CAROLINA (3) [SWING]
4.	FLORIDA (2) [RED]
5.	TENNESSEE (5) [RED]
6.	ARIZONA (8) [SWING]
7.	WASHINGTON (7) [BLUE]
8.	INDIANA (27) [RED]
9.	UTAH (13) [RED]
10.	IDAHO (6) [RED]
2023 growth rankings in parentheses

4) Against the information shown above, now, cross reference that with the top ten states in the U.S. for manufactured home shipments.  Note that several of the top inbound states above compared to the top states for new HUD Code manufactured home shipments that follow has some significant overlap.  Note that almost all of the states below are so-called “red” states or are swing states that tend to lean Republican (i.e.: red).  None of the top ten states for shipments are blue or primarily Democratic voters and politico states.

 

1.	Texas  [RED]
2.	Florida  [RED]
3.	NORTH CAROLINA [SWING but leans Red]
4.	Alabama [RED]
5.	South Carolina [RED]
6.	Louisiana [RED]
7.	Georgia [SWING but leans Red]
8.	Kentucky [RED]
9.	Tennessee [RED]
10.	Mississippi [RED]
2023 growth rankings in parentheses

 

5) The 2024 annual report that includes December 2024 data is linked below.

 

6) While both national manufactured home trade organizations are supposed to be nonpartisan, it would seem that the Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI) corporate leadership has an apparent tendency to lean Democratic in several cases. The first illustration below was uploaded by MHProNews on June 12, 2021. The photo of Nathan Smith includes a picture of him with Joe Biden (D) and a photo of Barack Obama (D).

 

6a) The largest producer of HUD Code manufactured homes was Clayton Homes and has been for much, but not all, of the 21st century. Clayton was acquired by Warren Buffett led Berkshire Hathaway and Buffett has for years openly supported Democratic presidential candidates. While Buffett didn’t come out openly in the 2024 cycle to support a candidate, there is an argument to be made that his longtime ally William “Bill” Gates III openly supported Kamala Harris (D). Buffett previously supported Barack Obama (D) and Hillary Clinton (D) among other democratic candidates.

6b) Buffett led Berkshire also owns 21st Mortgage Corporation and Vanderbilt Mortgage and Finance (VMF). Both companies have been periodically embroiled in various types of scandals, consumer-politico complaints, or negative media events since they were acquired by Buffett’s Berkshire.

 

 

6d) Billionaire CEO Larry Fink of the $11.55 trillion-dollar asset management giant BlackRock was described as a “lifelong Democratic” supporter by left-leaning Wikipedia.

 

 

6e) BlackRock, State Street, and Vanguard are three of the largest asset management firms in the world. All three have been criticized and/or sued over policies that include ESG and DEI related, positions that are routinely considered to align with Democratic party politics. All three hold extensive investments in multiple MHVille public firms.

 

 

 

 

7) The legal actions threatened/taken by several so called “Red state” or Republican attorneys general (AGs) against large asset management firms that include BlackRock, State Street, and Vanguard is evidence that they too see ESG and DEI as being in keeping with Democratic politics. Ironically, former Democratic Party Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders (VT-DS) has said that these financial giants are a threat to democracy.  That is arguably stating the obvious.

 

 

8) Each of those firms shown in the reports linked above that are owned by Berkshire Hathaway or are the subject of institutional investing by BlackRock, Vanguard, and State Street are prominent MHI member firms which often hold seats on the MHI board of directors. With that in mind, is it any surprise that what legal action that has been taken against several MHI members in Democratic or federal actions have often been apparent slap on the wrists rather than vigorous efforts to bring to heal those firms that are engaging in so-called predatory behavior? Curiously, one of MHI’s larger members, Frank Rolfe, has made remarks that when properly understood are embarrassing for MHI and is embarrassing or potentially problematic for his own business practices.

 

 

9) With those last few evidence-backed reports in mind, looking back, MHI’s behavior during times of Democratic political dominance or during Trump term 1.0 comes into focus.

 

 

10) By contrast to MHI, MHARR has demonstrably attempted to engage with whatever political party is in power in Washington, D.C., in a manner that would lead to organic industry growth rather than more consolidation of the industry.

 

 

 

 

11) MHARR is not interested in being an umbrella trade group and has said as much in their own words for years. But MHARR has made clear for years that they believe that MHI is failing at their claimed role of representing “all segments” of manufactured housing, meaning post-production issues such as zoning and financing, as well as production-focused issues such as federal construction regulations, the latter of which is MHARR’s focus.

 

 

12) There are numerous opportunities in literally every state in the U.S. to produce and/or ship to them large numbers of inherently affordable HUD Code manufactured homes. Democratic states could potentially keep more of their populations that are fleeing for lower costs and lower taxes if they had more mainstream manufactured homes. Red states and swing states need more affordable housing too. While the moving patterns are useful insights for marketers and others, the bottom line is that manufactured housing production is being throttled in part by insiders who appear to be consolidation focused, an issue that ought to be of interest to numerous Democrats who have campaigned for years on the importance of antitrust enforcement. Republicans are supposed to be interest in allowing the free market to operate properly. In essence, one reason why both major parties supported useful legislation for the manufactured home industry is because affordable housing is an ongoing need popular with politicians of both major parties.

13) That said, MHI has curiously if not corruptly failed to do what they themselves have said numerous times needs to be done. Namely, to properly enforce existing federal laws. That failure to enforce those laws results in more consolidation.

14) We began this report in the preface with this remark from North American Van Lines. “It should come as no surprise that states with higher income tax rates see increased rates of emigration; many of the top outbound states have the highest tax rates in the country. California residents have long endured some of the highest tax rates in the United States. Higher taxes reduce overall income and leave fewer funds for discretionary spending and investments. High property taxes (on top of already high property costs) further encourage Golden State residents to look elsewhere.” It should be obvious that lower taxes are popular with people and higher ones are generally unpopular with the working and middle classes. There is an array of data in the above that could be useful for MHI, or others, if they wanted to see the industry grow organically. To learn more, see the linked and related reports.

New Revolution Underway? ED ‘A Big Con;’ Bernie Vs Tulsi; Taibbi-Gaza-DOGE Global Ripples; Star Parker on HUD Sec Scott Turner; Emerging Picture of Giant Shakeup of Status Quo; MHVille Analysis

 

 

Rooting Out Federal-Corporate-Media Corruption; New DOE Secretary Chris Wright Outreach by Manufactured Housing Association for Regulatory Reform; plus Sunday Weekly MHVille Headlines Review