RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — The state of Virginia has been ranked as the fifth fastest growing state in the country, according to the U-Haul Growth Index.
The rankings are determined by calculating the net gain of one-way U-Haul trucks arriving in a state compared to those departing.
People traveling to Virginia in one-way U-Haul trucks fell almost 8% over 2021 but departures dropped by more than 11%. The change in retention caused Virginia to climb 26 spots from its placement at No. 31 in 2021. Virginia’s top growth market is reportedly Henrico County.
“Within the last six to eight months there has been steady migration into Virginia, particularly in the rural areas,” said Clinton O’Neill, U-Haul Company of Richmond president. “Virginia had fewer restrictions during the pandemic, and that appealed to a lot of people and businesses. There are a lot of new businesses opening.”
According to O’Neill, the ability to work from home has brought new interest to the Commonwealth as residents look for refuge from the “hustle and bustle.”
“You can hike in the mountains or relax on the beach here. Everything you could want is accessible in just over an hour from central Virginia,” O’Neill said. “There’s something for everyone.”
A full list of the 2022 U-Haul Growth States can be found below:
- Texas
- Florida
- South Carolina
- North Carolina
- Virginia
- Tennessee
- Arizona
- Georgia
- Ohio
- Idaho
- Colorado
- Utah
- Nevada
- Indiana
- Missouri
- Wisconsin
- Minnesota
- Montana
- New Mexico
- Alabama
- Iowa
- Oregon
- Washington
- Pennsylvania
- West Virginia
- Kentucky
- Delaware
- Connecticut
- Maine
- Vermont
- South Dakota
- Nebraska
- Wyoming
- Mississippi
- Louisana
- Washington, D.C.
- North Dakota
- New Hampshire
- Kansas
- Rhode Island
- Alaska
- Oklahoma
- Arkansas
- Maryland
- New Jersey
- New York
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Illinois
- California
According to U-Haul, Washington, D.C., is its own U-Haul market and is listed among growth states for migration trends purposes. Hawaii is omitted because state-to-state U-Haul truck moves do not occur.
