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Study shows Oregon No. 2 state with most inbound moves in 2022, Eugene one of the most moved-into cities

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EUGENE, Ore. -- Oregon was the second most popular state to move to in 2022, according to an annual study by United Van Lines.

Michael Stoll, an economist at UCLA, has spent the last decade working closely with the company to break down the data.

"The study is accounting of the number of shipments they do per state either in or out, and then with those total shipments they take the fraction that are inbound state and calculates the fraction that are outbound, and based on those percentages they determine whether or not the state is a high move in state or move out state," Stoll said.

According to the data, 67% of people moving into or out of Oregon were moving in. Of those surveyed, almost 14% moved for retirement, nearly 17% to be closer to family, and 15% relocated for lifestyle reasons. But the kicker, Stoll said, was that 51% of people moved for work.

One of those people is Lebanon resident Alicia Wolf, who moved from Arizona to Oregon in May 2022.

"We sold our house on that Monday, we accepted an offer on our house on that Monday, and had my son on that Saturday. We would always come this way for family vacations, and we just decided to do it while I was on maternity leave," Wolf said.

Wolf grew up in Idaho and spent a few years in Arizona, but said Oregon was always calling, and not even her newborn baby could hold them back from making their big move.

"It's gorgeous here, and we're so happy," Wolf said.

Moving to Oregon

According to the data, more Millennials and Gen-Zs are moving in.

"Right around 50% of those moving in are between the ages of 18 to 34. They are college educated and high earners, over half earning over $100,000," Stoll said.

Stoll said this comes as a bit of a surprise as, in years past, most people who moved to Oregon do so for retirement.

"Oregon, for the last decade, had been at the top for inbound states. Last year was number eight and in the past, somewhere between nine and five. So, it's always been in the top, and the reasons for that have been fairly consistent and mainly driven by those at or near retirement age who are moving from neighboring states like California," Stoll said.

Stoll said in the last year, people are moving to smaller cities like Eugene.

"A lot of folks moving to Oregon are moving to Eugene. What we find is that a lot of people who are making interstate migration decisions are leaving large dense cities and moving to smaller towns and mid-size cities. Eugene is a perfect example, where you have enough amenities and cultural attractions to attract the Gen-Z and Millennials who are looking for many different things in their lifestyle," Stoll said.

He said this has been an interesting turn because, for the last 30 years, most of the migration is towards bigger cities in the southern and western states.

"This trend that we are seeing positively impacts Oregon's local economy," Stoll said.

Reporter

Watch Grace Smith on weekdays and weekends as she reports.

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