January 9, 2018

PHOENIX, Ariz. and HOUSTON, Texas (Jan. 8, 2018) — Texas continued its reign as America’s No. 1 Growth State during 2017, according to U-Haul data analyzing the past year’s U.S. migration trends.

Growth States are calculated by the net gain of one-way U-Haul truck rentals entering a state versus leaving a state during a calendar year. Migration trends data is compiled from more than 1.7 million one-way U-Haul truck rental transactions that occur annually.

Florida, Arkansas, South Carolina and Tennessee rounded out the top five, and North Carolina was seventh, continuing a strong growth movement in the Southeast. California overtook Illinois on the list as the biggest net-loss state.

Texas year-over-year arrivals of one-way U-Haul truck rentals rose 1 percent while departures climbed 3 percent from the 2016 numbers. Some of the state’s increase in overall U-Haul transactions can likely be attributed to an active hurricane season.

Despite a larger year-over-year increase in departures, arriving trucks still accounted for 50.3 percent of all one-way U-Haul traffic in Texas to maintain its status as the top net-gain state. Texas secured the No. 1 growth ranking for 2016 after settling for the No. 39 spot for 2015.

While migration trends do not correlate directly to population or economic growth, U-Haul growth data is an effective gauge of how well states and cities are attracting and maintaining residents.

McKinney, Prosper, College Station, Temple and Kaufman paced Texas’s net gain of one-way U-Haul trucks. Austin, Midland, Pflugerville, New Braunfels and Irving were among other notable cities to post strong net gains.

“We say that everything is bigger in Texas, and you’ve heard the slogan ‘Texas Strong’ during the (Hurricane Harvey) recovery,” said Matt Merrill, U-Haul Company of West Houston president. “We’re not waiting for anyone to come with handouts. Everybody is helping everybody. We know that it happened and we know what we went through. But you wouldn’t be able to go through today and see that a hurricane hit. The recovery has been handled well.”

U-Haul is the authority on migration trends thanks to its expansive network that blankets all 50 states and 10 Canadian provinces. The geographical coverage from more than 21,000 U-Haul locations provides a comprehensive overview of where people are moving like no one else in the industry.

The arrival of U-Haul Truck Share 24/7 is revolutionizing the moving industry through its more convenient, more secure way to pick up and return a truck. U-Haul live verification technology allows rental transactions to be carried out entirely on a smartphone at any hour – day or night. There are no membership fees. Simply visit uhaul.com to create an online account.

U-Haul Growth State Rankings for 2017

  1. Texas
  2. Florida
  3. Arkansas
  4. South Carolina
  5. Tennessee
  6. Washington
  7. North Carolina
  8. Connecticut
  9. Colorado
  10. Vermont
  11. Alabama
  12. Iowa
  13. Virginia
  14. Idaho
  15. West Virginia
  16. Nebraska
  17. Indiana
  18. Delaware
  19. New Mexico
  20. Wisconsin
  21. Utah
  22. Wyoming
  23. Mississippi
  24. Oklahoma
  25. Montana
  26. Maine
  27. South Dakota
  28. Washington D.C.
  29. Kentucky
  30. Missouri
  31. New Hampshire
  32. Oregon
  33. Nevada
  34. Ohio
  35. Minnesota
  36. Alaska
  37. North Dakota
  38. Kansas
  39. Rhode Island
  40. Louisiana
  41. Georgia
  42. Maryland
  43. Arizona
  44. New York
  45. New Jersey
  46. Massachusetts
  47. Michigan
  48. Pennsylvania
  49. Illinois
  50. California

* Washington, D.C. is its own U-Haul territory and is listed among states for migration purposes. Hawaii is not included since state-to-state truck rentals are not applicable.

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