Redfin Survey: 1 in 4 Americans Want to Live Somewhere Else Due to Their Local Government’s Pandemic Response

Fifty-three percent of Americans are uncomfortable with the idea of moving to a big city, up from 39% before the pandemic.

Twenty-six percent of Americans said their local government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic has made them want to move away from where they currently live or change where they want to move to, according to a survey of more than 3,000 U.S. residents that was fielded in October.

Twenty-one percent of respondents said their local governments’ pandemic response has made them like where they live more. 

“2020 has made Americans realize just how much power their local governments have over their way of life,” said Redfin chief economist Daryl Fairweather. “If residents of a certain area feel their local rules are too lax or too strict, they may want to move somewhere where the local leadership is more in line with their personal beliefs. And the rise in remote work means some people can move to a different city or state without changing jobs, removing what’s usually a major barrier to relocation. Americans moving to areas more aligned with their political views could make certain counties and states more liberal or more conservative.”

Forty-two percent of respondents would be hesitant to move to an area where most people have political views different from their own, up from 32% in June. And 24% would want to move to a different state if the Supreme Court were to increase states’ rights with respect to health care, gun laws, etc. 

Broken down by political affiliation, 32% of Trump voters said their local government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic has made them want to move away from where they currently live or change where they want to move to. That’s compared with 23% of Biden voters.

School shutdowns are also impacting where people want to live. Nineteen percent of survey respondents said school shutdowns have made them want to move away from where they currently live or change where they want to move to. Seventeen percent of respondents say school shutdowns have made them like where they live more. 

Most Americans don’t want to move to a big city

Fifty-three percent of Americans are uncomfortable with the idea of moving to a big city, up from 39% before the pandemic, according to the same survey. 

On the flip side, 25% of respondents are comfortable with the idea of moving to a big city, down from 36% pre-pandemic.

“I’ve seen a lot of folks moving to Albuquerque and its surrounding areas from big coastal cities since the start of the pandemic because they no longer want to live in crowded, dense places,” said Albuquerque Redfin real estate agent Jimmy Martinez. “People who are relocating—mostly remote workers—are looking for big houses with a lot of outdoor space, relatively low cost of living, a laid-back vibe and outdoor recreation. The suburbs are particularly popular because buyers can find a larger lot to create their own private oasis. Housing prices are climbing to record highs, supply is incredibly low and most homes up for sale are receiving multiple offers.” 

Methodology

Redfin surveyed over 3,000 U.S. residents aged 18 and up between October 7 and October 15, 2020. The demographics of the survey sample were on par with U.S. Census breakdowns for age, gender, race, and geography in order to match as closely as possible to the makeup of the general population. 

For this report, we focused on responses to three questions:

1. “Has your city or state government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic changed your opinion of where you want to live?” The answer choices were “No, it has had no impact on my feelings about where I live”; “No, it has made me like where I live more”; “Yes, it has made me want to move away from where I live” and “Yes, it has made me change my plans of where I want to move to.” To simplify the findings, we combined the results of the final two questions.
2. “Have school shutdowns changed your opinion of where you want to live?” The answer choices were “No, it has had no impact on my feelings about where I live”; “No, it has made me like where I live more”; “Yes, it has made me want to move away from where I live” and “Yes, it has made me change my plans of where I want to move to.” To simplify the findings, we combined the results of the final two questions.
3. Two separate questions:  “Before the COVID-19 pandemic, how comfortable were you with the idea of moving to a big city such as New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Austin, Portland, or Seattle?” and “How comfortable are you now with the idea of moving to a big city such as New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Austin, Portland, or Seattle?” The answer choices were “comfortable”; “neutral” and “uncomfortable”.