Atlas Van Lines Announces 2013 Migration Trends That Show Where America Is Moving

EVANSVILLE, IN, March 30, 2014 (Press-News.org) According to one of the nation's leading movers, the 2013 Atlas Van Lines Migration Patterns study found the majority of the country achieved a balance between inbound and outbound moves while the total number of moves increased six percent from 2012. Having started in 1993, Atlas conducts the annual study to track the nation's interstate (or between states) moving patterns year to year.

Two states that were outbound in 2012 are now balanced states, Vermont and West Virginia. Formerly inbound states Alaska and Washington also became balanced. After spending 2012 as balanced states, Delaware and Pennsylvania became outbound while Idaho and Montana became inbound.

Similar to last year, the highest number of moves occurred in California, Texas and Florida. California comes in at the top with more than 14,500 moves in 2013, which accounts for 19 percent of total interstate moves. North Dakota had the highest percentage of inbound moves, with 67 percent of all moves being inbound. Connecticut experienced the highest percentage of outbound moves totaling 60 percent while New York was close behind with 59 percent.

"Our annual Migration Pattern study provides invaluable insights that relate not only to our industry, but our nation as a whole," said Jack Griffin, president and COO of Atlas World Group. "This year's findings show more states are balanced between arriving and departing residents while increased overall moves could be an indicator of an improving economy."

In 2013, the total number of interstate and inter-province moves reached 77,308, up from 73,256 in 2012. In addition, regional trends show the most significant changes occurred in the Northern and Western states:

Northern States
The Northern states underwent major change from 2012 to 2013. Pennsylvania went from being a balanced state to outbound; Vermont and West Virginia both went from being outbound states to balanced; and Delaware went from being balanced to outbound. Washington DC remains as the only northern location to be inbound for 11 consecutive years.

Southern States
The Southern states saw no change from 2012 to 2013. The majority of the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic states remain balanced with the exception of Tennessee and North Carolina, which both remain inbound states. All of the Southwest states remain balanced in 2013 excluding inbound Texas.

Midwestern States
Mirroring last year's data, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Minnesota and Nebraska remained outbound while Kansas, Missouri, Michigan, Wisconsin and Iowa remained balanced. North Dakota remained inbound. No Midwestern state has been classified as inbound for more than 10 consecutive years.

Western States
The Western states also experienced significant change since 2012, particularly with Montana and Idaho shifting from balanced to inbound states. Additionally, Washington went from inbound to balanced, leaving the majority of the Western Unites States balanced.

Canadian Provinces
Five of the 10 provinces remain outbound - British Columbia, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario and Saskatchewan. Having moved to inbound in 2012, New Brunswick is back to being balanced. Another noteworthy change is that Quebec went from being balanced to outbound. Two territories - Nunavut and Yukon Territory - are unclassified, while the third territory - Northwest Territory - is outbound.
How status is determined

Each state's or province's status is determined by its threshold value, which is the total number of shipments multiplied by 0.55 (i.e., in a state with 100 moves, at least 55 must be outgoing to be considered outbound). All other states or provinces in which outbound or inbound numbers don't exceed the threshold are classified as balanced. Shipments noted for Canada are cross-border to the U.S. or from the U.S. (not inter-provincial).

To view full results of the 2013 migration patterns, a map and annual histories for each state, visit http://www.atlasvanlines.com/migration-patterns/. For an infographic on the results, visit http://www.atlasvanlines.com/infographics/2013-migration-patterns/.

About Atlas Van Lines
Atlas Van Lines, a national moving company, is the largest subsidiary of Atlas World Group, an Evansville, Ind.-based company. Atlas World Group companies employ nearly 700 people throughout North America. Nearly 500 Atlas interstate moving agents in the United States and Canada specialize in corporate relocation, household moving services and in the transportation of high-value items such as electronics, fine art, store fixtures and furniture. For more information, visit http://www.atlasvanlines.com.