In an analysis of a sample of nearly one million Redfin.com users searching for homes across 75 metro areas in the first three months of 2017, we found that one in five (19.8%) searched mostly for homes outside their home metro. Among them, about half searched exclusively in other metros. Three trends dominated the migration patterns seen in Redfin.com user searches last quarter:
- Movement of Bay Area residents to more affordable metro areas dominated the nation’s migration patterns in the first quarter.
- Metro areas in the South attracted migrants from the coasts.
- Chicago, Boston and Seattle had perhaps the most dedicated residents, with more than nine out of 10 local users planning to stay in the area.