Why Thousands are Leaving Florida and the Carolinas for New Jersey

The next time you're with a group of friends or co-workers, ask them what they would do if they hit the lottery.

About 90% of the time, you will hear the same answer: "The first thing I'd do is move out of Jersey!"

Let's be honest, New Jersey is a state that we wholeheartedly love and wholeheartedly don't love at the same time.

Top Reasons Why People Move Out of New Jersey

Why? The obvious reasons are sky-high taxes and the sky-high cost of living. And it's those two things that make moving to the Carolinas or Florida very attractive for thousands of people every year.

• Average New Jersey homeowner pays $10,095/year in property taxes
• Average Florida homeowner pays $2,338/year in property taxes

Where Are New Jerseyans Moving To?

According to 247wallst.com, here's a sample of the top ten states that people in New Jersey are moving to:

1. Florida
5. Texas
7. North Carolina
8. Georgia
10. South Carolina

People are Also Moving to New Jersey

But it's also interesting to note that while those southern states are destinations for those in New Jersey, some of those same states rank high for people moving to New Jersey.

Yes, people (and a lot of them) leave Florida's year-round sunny, warm weather to move to the Garden State.

I can't imagine trading palm trees and 70-degree weather in January for jughandles and nor'easters, but...

Why People Move to New Jersey

As for exactly why moving vans are headed north on I-95 to get here, there are a few reasons.

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First, as much as we hate to depend on New York City and Philadelphia for things, huge corporations are headquartered in and around those metro areas. Lots of people move to New Jersey to be near better-paying jobs.

Of course, the Garden State is also home to, and near, countless large colleges and universities.

Long story short, New Jersey is an economic and educational hub for the nation and that's very attractive to a lot of people — and they are willing to pay the price to live here.

• READ MORE: New Jersey’s Best 2025 Summer Road Trips

Florida Is One of the Top States Sending People to NJ

So, where are all of these Jersey-newbies coming from?

We recently turned to our friends at Stacker, which recently took a deep dive into some census data and they determined the top 25 states that are sending the most people to New Jersey.

If, in your travels, you've been noticing more license plates from Virginia, Texas, and beyond, this might explain why.