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A new report by LendingTree finds that almost 11 million Gen Z adults, or about one-in-four, moved across state lines in 2024, according to the latest Census Bureau data.
The data showed that an estimated 10.7 million of 44.6 million Gen Z adults, or 23.9% of that generation, moved to a different state or the District of Columbia in 2024. That figure is a far higher share than for any age group, with Millennials the closest at 14%, followed by Gen X at 7.2%, and Baby Boomers at 5.2%.
South Carolina had the largest influx of Gen Z adults, with a net gain of 22,843 in 2024, while Missouri added 14,063 to lead a group of four other states and the District of Columbia with net gains of at least 10,000 Gen Z adults.
California suffered the largest net loss of Gen Z adults with an outflow of 58,109 in 2024. That figure includes an estimated 19,287 who left California for Texas. Other states with large net losses of Gen Z adults were New Jersey with 37,556 and Illinois with 20,031.
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Matt Schulz, chief consumer finance analyst at LendingTree, told FOX Business that one-in-four Gen Z adults moving across state lines in 2024 “is an awful lot of people and it’s by far the biggest percentage of any other generation.”
“To a degree, I think that makes a lot of sense given that Gen Z may be moving away to college, may be moving away to start a new job, and is just generally more mobile and a little more able to kind of pick and choose when they move than other generations are,” he added.
Schulz said that in terms of the states with the largest influx of Gen Z adults, there wasn’t “one common thread because states as disparate as Texas and Washington and New York had among the biggest net gains.”
“One thing that we did see was that there was a lot of movement, as you might imagine, when two fairly large states bordered each other. So, for example, North and South Carolina in the Charlotte area, or New York and New Jersey – places like that ended up making up for a lot of that state-to-state movement,” Schulz said.
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Affordability concerns likely played some role in the decisions by Gen Z adults to move across state lines as they looked for places to stretch their budgets further, though there wasn’t a clear trend.
“Generally speaking, states with the biggest net losses are among the more expensive states – California, Massachusetts, places like that. But also a place like Louisiana was kind of an exception to that rule,” Schulz noted.
“I think we can safely say that affordability was driving at least part of this because it’s no mystery that if you are looking for housing or looking for a job or just looking for an affordable place to live, there can be tremendous differences among the various states in this country,” Schulz said.
“Being flexible provides you options, and when money is tight, when affordability is an issue, when inflation is rising – options are really, really important because it’s easy to feel really powerless in a time when prices are high. But the truth is that you do have things that you can do to make a difference,” he added.
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Schulz said that for people considering relocating between states, there are “a million factors that go into it, and money is obviously a big one.”
“But it is also about understanding the other factors that go into deciding where to live, a support system, family, if you’re wanting to grow a family, do you have a support system in that area? And then things like taxes and job opportunities and so many things like that,” he added.
For those considering a move to a different state, Schulz acknowledged that it’s a big deal and that the “last thing you want to do is end up having to U-turn backwards because you made the wrong call.”
He said that they need to take the time to understand a range of factors from “property taxes to employment opportunities to cultural opportunities to what the weather is like.”
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“So much more goes into what makes the place the right place to live than just the fact that it’s more affordable, so it’s really important that you take the time to really crunch the numbers and figure out what’s a priority to you before you go,” Schulz said.
