Sarasota a top location for moves in United States according to national movers PODS

Samantha Gholar, Sarasota Herald-Tribune
Updated ·2 min read
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Bayfront Park and Marina Jack in heart of downtown Sarasota where you can experience boat and jet ski rentals, transient slips, boat club, sunset cruises, and waterfront restaurants.
Bayfront Park and Marina Jack in heart of downtown Sarasota where you can experience boat and jet ski rentals, transient slips, boat club, sunset cruises, and waterfront restaurants.

A recent ranking released by national moving and storage company PODS has ranked Sarasota near the top of its 2023 list of the top 20 cities where people are moving across the country.

Sarasota ranked as the second most moved-to city in the United States, one slot lower than its first-place finish on the 2022 list of cities where people relocated. Based on PODS customer moves in 2022, Sarasota had the highest growth rate in Florida and the entire country, and that trend continued into 2023, the company's data shows.

This year's report analyzed data about consumer movements for a period of 15 months by tracking resident trends and environmental factors such as cost of living, crime rates, and inclement weather.

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina topped this year's ranking.

Construction continues in downtown Sarasota. This year Sarasota County's taxable value increased by 13.4% from $82.3 billion to $93.4 billion, according to the Sarasota County Property Appraiser's Office.
Construction continues in downtown Sarasota. This year Sarasota County's taxable value increased by 13.4% from $82.3 billion to $93.4 billion, according to the Sarasota County Property Appraiser's Office.

Other economic factors have also come into play for new Sarasota residents who have chosen to relocate here, according to the report. For home-seekers coming from northern states, the lower taxes, warmer weather and more affordable housing prices have driven the influx of new residents to Sarasota and across the Sunshine State. Comparatively, in 2022, most new residents said they migrated primarily to work remotely and to be closer to loved ones.

More than 80% of the destinations on this year's list are in the South. However, Florida continues to see the largest influx of new residents in 2023, with a total of six cities on the list. Other Florida cities attracting new residents include Orlando, Ocala, Jacksonville, Tampa, and Melbourne. The cities with the highest number of move-ins according to PODS are:

  1. Myrtle Beach, SC/Wilmington, NC

  2. Sarasota

  3. Orlando

  4. Ocala

  5. Houston, TX

  6. Dallas-Fort Worth, TX

  7. Knoxville, TN

  8. Jacksonville

  9. Tampa Bay

  10. Greenville - Spartanburg, SC

  11. Nashville, TN

  12. Melbourne

  13. Portland, ME

  14. San Antonio, TX

  15. Boise, ID

  16. Charlotte, NC

  17. Asheville, NC

  18. Phoenix, AZ

  19. Savannah, GA

  20. Raleigh, NC

According to the report, residents moving to the 2023 ranked cities are leaving larger cities over factors such as crime rates, rent prices and overpopulation. The top four move-out cities are Los Angeles and the San Francisco area; Chicago, IL; and Long Island.

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This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota one of country's most moved to cities, says PODS report