Myrtle Beach ranks in top 25 fastest growing US cities, report says. Where does it fall?
Throughout the last year, people have been picking up and moving to Myrtle Beach.
A new report from the moving company U-Haul concluded Myrtle Beach ranks 17th in the country for one-way moves using U-Haul trucks. The one-way truck trips rose 32% from the same metric in 2020, according to a release from the company.
Myrtle Beach was last ranked 18th in the country in 2018. Since then, Myrtle Beach hasn’t cracked the top 25. This year, it’s nestled between Austin, Tex., and Surprise, Ariz., in it’s number-17 ranking.
The one-way moves are one metric to contextualize rapid growth in the area. Myrtle Beach continues to be one of the fastest-growing areas in the country, proven again by the 2020 U.S. Census. With a remote-work revolution brought on by the pandemic, relocating has exploded throughout the last two years.
That could mean workers formerly tethered to the region housing their office have a newfound freedom, and some have chosen the beach.
“We see a lot of people coming down from Canada,” said Matthew McCoy, U-Haul Company of Southern Atlantic Coast president. “But more and more people are deciding to stay. Myrtle Beach is expanding upward and outward.”
While North Carolina communities like Raleigh-Durham and Wilmington both broke the top 25, Myrtle Beach is the only South Carolina city to reach that milestone.
The attraction to the Myrtle Beach area, whatever the reason, could be partially to blame for rising rent costs and construction prices throughout the pandemic. This year, people who have lived here for years were shocked by an average 20% increase in rent prices.
But even with rising cost of living, the area is a steal compared to some northern states where housing is even more expensive. A low cost of living in contrast to other states plus an agreeable climate continues to bring more people to the area to stay, many of them in U-Haul trucks.
“With mild winters and great beaches, it’s no wonder people are moving to Myrtle Beach,” McCoy said.
Here’s the complete list of the top 25 fastest growing cities, according to U-Haul’s one-way truck trips:
Kissimmee- St. Cloud, FL
Raleigh-Durham, NC
Palm Bay-Melbourne, FL
North port, FL
Madison, WI
Fort Myers-North Fort Myers, FL
College Station-Bryan, TX
Sacramento-Roseville, CA
Clermont, FL
Sarasota-Bradenton, FL
Daytona Beach, FL
San Diego, CA
Port St. Lucie, FL
Milwaukee, WI
Grapevine, TX
Austin, TX
Myrtle Beach, SC
Surprise, AZ
Brandon-Riverview, FL
Wilmington, NC
Denver, CO
Richardson, TX
Auburn-Opelika, AL
Ocala, FL
Carrollton, TX
This story was originally published January 6, 2022 at 9:48 AM.
