Golden Years, on the Move: Retirees Could Drive 2024 Migration Trends

HireAHelper, an online moving company connecting users with credentialed services and movers, stated in a new blog post covering 2023 and making predictions for 2024 found that 338,000 seniors (baby boomers) retired in 2023 according to the U.S. Census Bureau—a three-year high—but this should come as no surprise as housing markets began to cool off, inflation slowed down, and social security benefits increased which led more Americans to move into retirement compared to 2022. 

In HireAHelper’s latest annual moving report, they take a look at trends that shaped moving into retirement last year, top destinations, and the demographics of retirees. 

In 2023, when the share of Americans who moved fell to a historic low of 7.8%, retirement moves registered a 44% growth compared to the year prior. That equates to more than 338,000 Americans moving to retire in 2023—the highest in three years. 

This means that after falling briefly during COVID, the number of Americans moving to retire has grown for the third consecutive year. 

These finding are similar to previous studies conducted by HireAHelper which found that retirees are more likely to move states than other demographics; a quarter (25%) of retirement moves in the U.S. in 2023 crossed state lines, compared to 18% of moves overall. 

One of the top destinations shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone: Florida. Once again, it was the number one destination for retirees in 2023; the Sunshine State attracted around one in ten (11%) of all retirement moves that went to a different state. 

Florida was followed by South Carolina, which commanded 10% of all retiree moves, followed by New Jersey, and Texas, which accounted for about 6% of all retiree moves. 

As for where retirees are originating from, California tops the charts with 18% of all out-of-state moves. This was followed by New York who had 11% of retirees move out of state. 

Click here to view the retiree migration data in its entirety, including interactive graphs, charts, and maps.