Americans are fleeing New York and New Jersey in search of remote pastures in Vermont and Idaho

Far more Americans have moved to Vermont, Idaho, Oregon and South Carolina than those who have left since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, new data published by Bloomberg shows.

However, the opposite can be said for New York and New Jersey, with each seeing a large proportion of residents relocate to from its cities to Florida, Texas and other Sunbelt states since March, because of an increase in fear of living in densely populated areas in a world post-COVID-19.

As the month of August came to a close Monday, bringing with it another moving-deadline for tenants all over the country, statistics point towards a sharp uptick in US mobility.

While relocations last year reached an all-time low according to the Brooking’s Institution, Gregory Daco, chief U.S. economist at Oxford Economics, said 2020 has seen a staggering increase in mobility across state lines.

‘We have seen increased mobility across the states – driven by a fear of living in densely populated areas, a realization that the “old normal” of commuting into a city office is still but a distant possibility, and the realization that remote work can be an effective, long-term option,’ Daco told Bloomberg.

Data from the Census Bureau won’t officially be able to confirm just how much mobility has increased since the pandemic began nearly six months ago for another few months, however preliminary data helps to show just how much has changed since the state of the crisis.

A Pew Research Survey published on July 6 found that around one in five Americans had relocated during the outbreak of COVID-19 or know someone who has.

The majority of those who have relocated scarpered from densely populated cities in search of greener, sparser or more remote pastures.

Cities in Florida, Texas, California and North Carolina accounted for just under half of New Yorker relocations, data from United Van Lines show.

So-called do-it-yourself moves have also ‘increased considerably and consistently over the summer months’ for U-Haul international, a moving vehicle rental company, company spokesman Jeff Lockridge told Bloomberg.

Around 25 percent of a group of 2,000 real estate agents surveyed in June reported that some home buyers altered the location of where they were looking to purchase a property because of the pandemic.

Those who changed their focus often did so after diverting their attention from central city locations to suburban neighborhoods, agents said.

New Jersey and New York have suffered the most coronavirus-spurred moves, with United Van Lines reporting that two thirds of moves are for relocations out of those states.

The number of people seeking leave New York City during the pandemic has nearly doubled from the same time last year, while interest in fleeing the San Francisco Bay area has also jumped some 31 percent, United Van Lines’ parent company UniGroup reported.

Other states with large urban populations that have suffered a high number of relocations during the pandemic includes the likes of Illinois, Connecticut and California.

Meanwhile, the states to have been the largest beneficiaries of inbound movers have been much less densely populated areas, with Vermont topping the list.

Idaho, Oregon and South Carolina also attracted a large number of people seeking to relocate.

Bloomberg reported that one effective way of determining how desirable an area is for relocation is through analyzing truck-rental prices.

The network observed that a hypothetical move from New York City to Vermont is priced at $773, compared to just $236 from Vermont to the Big Apple.

This price differential is due to numerous variables, one being that more people are moving out of a city than into it, Bloomberg reported.

DailyMail.com reported yesterday that real estate brokers in the surrounding areas of the city including the Hudson Valley, Westchester County, New Jersey, and Connecticut are reporting soaring demand for houses in recent months.

Much of the interest has been voiced by residents of the Big Apple who are seeking to move to the suburbs with the pandemic allowing them to work from home while Manhattan office buildings sit largely empty.

Compared to 2019, there was a 44 per cent jump in the number of July home sales for suburban counties just outside of New York City, according to figures compiled by Miller Samuel Real Estate Appraisers & Consultants.

That includes a 112 per cent increase in Westchester County; a 73 per cent increase in home sales in Fairfield County, Connecticut; a 35 per cent increase in home sales in Putnam County; and a 19 per cent increase in Dutchess County.

In Manhattan, July home sales dipped by 56 percent, according to The New York Times.

Before the pandemic, New Yorkers were willing to put up with cramped, tiny apartments and a high cost of living in exchange for short commutes to the office as well as easy access to the city’s cultural attractions and nightlife.

Since COVID-19 has essentially shut down much of the city’s museums, theaters, and sports stadiums, those with means are now buying homes that give them the comfort of working from home in larger spaces.

Some real estate agents said clients coming from the city have also expressed concern about the disturbing rise in violent crime in recent months.

While business across the country have been implementing work-from-home structures and holding meetings digitally that can be conducted from anywhere, William Frey, of the Bookings Institution, says he believes cities such as New York will bounce back quickly.

‘These recent population shifts, if real, will be short-lived and change when the pandemic subsides,’ Frey told Bloomberg. ‘Young adult Gen Zers could find cities attractive,’ he continued, comparing the theory to the boom of appeal cities had on millennials after the financial recession between 2007 and 2009.