U.S. Department of Commerce

Economics and Statistics Administration

U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

census.gov

Reason for Moving: 2012 to 2013

Population Characteristics

By David Ihrke

Issued June 2014

P20-574

INTRODUCTION

Between 2012 and 2013, 35.9 million people 1 year 

and over living in the United States moved to a different residence. The mover rate for this period was 11.7 

percent. Why did these people move? As displayed 

in Figure 1, housing-related reasons were the most 

popular response with 17.2 million (48.0 percent).1

Family-related reasons were the second most selected 

choice with 30.3 percent, followed by job-related (19.4 

percent) and other (2.3 percent). 

These data come from the 2013 Annual Social

and Economic Supplement (ASEC) of the Current

Population Survey (CPS). The 2013 ASEC questionnaire 

had a list of 18 common reasons for moving, with an 

additional option to write-in reasons that did not fit 

into any of the predetermined choices.2 All of the individual reasons can be collapsed into four major reason 

for move categories: family-related, employmentrelated,3 housing-related, and other. 

This report contains an in-depth look at the most 

recent reason for move data available. Using estimates 

from the 2013 ASEC, cross tabulations of collapsed 

reason for move categories are analyzed by selected 

characteristics. In this report, these characteristics 

include sex, age, race and Hispanic origin, educational 

attainment, marital status, labor force status, and type 

of move with distance moved incorporated. Next, an 

analysis focusing exclusively on householders is conducted. Householders are isolated in order to remove 

the influence of other family members who could be 

1 All comparative statements in this report have undergone statistical testing, and, unless otherwise noted, all comparisons are statistically significant at the 90 percent significance level. 2 For a list of the individual reasons, see Appendix Table 1 in the 

appendix of this report. 3 This category can also be referred to as job- or work-related. 

assigned the householder’s reason for move, thereby 

inflating estimates. In the third section, historical reason for move data are used to identify if any significant 

fluctuations are observed in the data over time. The 

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey,

Annual Social and Economic Supplement, 2013.

Figure 1.

How many people moved and what was

their main reason for moving? In the

United States, 35.9 million people 

moved between 2012 and 2013.

Population 1 year and over Reason for moving

}

{ Movers

11.7%

Nonmovers

88.3%

Family

30.3%

Housing

48.0%

Employment

19.4%

Other 2.3%
2 U.S. Census Bureau

last segment of the report contains 

a comparison of 2011 ASEC reason 

for move estimates with those 

from the 2011 American Housing 

Survey (AHS). An appendix containing information on changes to the 

response categories over time and 

how write-in responses are handled 

concludes this report. 

HIGHLIGHTS

• Of the 35.9 million people 1 year 

and over that moved between 

2012 and 2013, 17.2 million 

(48.0 percent) gave a housingrelated reason for moving. 

• Males were more inclined to 

move for job-related reasons 

than females. 

• Better-educated movers were 

more likely to move for jobrelated reasons than movers 

with lower levels of educational 

attainment. 

• Married respondents were the 

least likely to move for familyrelated reasons. 

• Intracounty moves were typically 

for housing-related reasons, 

while intercounty moves and 

moves from abroad were more 

for job-related reasons. 

• “Wanted new or better home/

apartment,” “other housing reason,” and “other family reason” 

were the most popular detailed 

reason for move responses in 

1999 and 2013.4

• Despite differences in survey 

methodology and reason for 

move responses, the AHS and 

ASEC had comparable rankings across the four collapsed 

categories. 

4 The 2013 estimates for “wanted new or 

better home/apartment” and “other family 

reason” were not significantly different.

CHARACTERISTICS

Reason for move data from the 

most recent cycle, 2013, of the 

ASEC are provided in Table 1.5

The collapsed categories of familyrelated, employment-related,

housing-related, and other are 

crossed by an assortment of characteristics in order to identify basic 

commonalities and differences by 

reason for move. 

Males moved more for jobrelated reasons than females.

The number of female movers was 

greater than the number of male 

movers. Over 17 million males 

moved, compared to 18.3 million 

females. A plausible explanation 

for this difference is that there are 

more females in the population universe (civilian noninstitutionalized 

population 1 year and over) than 

males, which could carry over into 

migration. Looking at the distribution by sex, females composed a 

greater percentage of the population universe than males with

51.1 percent. 

Analyzing the reason for move 

responses, housing-related reasons were most popular among 

both sexes.6 Results indicate that a 

greater percentage of males moved 

for job-related reasons. Males led 

the job-related category with

20.4 percent, compared to 18.5 

percent of females. 

5 To access the 2013 ASEC detailed migration tables, visit <www.census.gov>, go to 

the “People” tab near the top of the page, 

and select “Geographical Mobility/Migration.” 

This takes you to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 

migration Web page. Use the “Quick Links” 

on the left hand side to access “CPS Data on 

Migration/Geographical Mobility.” Under the 

“Geographical Mobility: 2012 to 2013” subheading, click on the “Detailed Tables” link. 6 Housing-related reasons were not significantly different for males and females.

Respondents 25 to 29 years 

old had the lowest percentage 

of housing-related reasons for 

moving.

A respondent’s age plays an important role in the reason for move 

given, partly because of their stage 

in the life course. For example, the 

reason for move distribution for 18- 

to 24-year-olds was 45.6 percent 

housing-related, 32.0 percent family-related, 18.7 percent job-related, 

and 3.7 percent for “other” reasons. Compared with some of the 

other age groups, housing-related 

reasons were not as important to 

18- to 24-year-olds.7 Instead, other 

reasons played a greater role. One 

of the detailed reasons contained in 

the other collapsed category is “to 

attend or leave college,” which is 

a common occurrence for this age 

range. 

The only age range reporting 

a lower housing-related reason 

for move percentage than 18- to 

24-year-olds was 25- to 29-yearolds with 42.5 percent. This group 

focused more on job-related reasons than 18- to 24-year-olds (23.6 

percent compared to 18.7 percent). 

Like the 18- to 24-year-olds, 25- to 

29-year-olds had a high percentage 

of other reasons with 2.8 percent, 

which is not significantly different from the 3.7 percent of 18- to 

24-year-olds.8 Some of these 25- to 

29-year-olds are still attending 

and leaving college, which helps 

explain why the other category 

is relatively high. Respondents 

65 years and over had a high 

percentage of other reasons as 

7 Housing-related reason for moves for 

18- to 24-year-olds were not significantly different from 30- to 44-year-olds and 65 years 

and over. 8 The other reason for move estimate for 

25- to 29-year-olds was not significantly different from 45- to 64-year-olds.
U.S. Census Bureau 3

Table 1.

Reason for Move by Selected Characteristics (Collapsed Categories): 2012 to 2013

Selected characteristics Total 

(in thousands)

Percent

FamilyrelatedJobrelatedHousingrelated Other

 Movers (1 year and over) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35,918 30.3 19.4 48.0 2.3

Sex

Male . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17,638 29.6 20.4 47.6 2.3

Female . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18,280 30.9 18.5 48.3 2.4

Age

1 to 17 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9,194 31.0 17.0 50.5 1.5

18 to 24 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,498 32.0 18.7 45.6 3.7

25 to 29 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,915 31.0 23.6 42.5 2.8

30 to 44 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8,288 27.6 22.7 48.3 1.4

45 to 64 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,443 29.6 17.8 50.4 2.3

65 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,581 32.5 12.0 50.0 5.4

Race and Hispanic Origin

White alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26,219 31.0 19.7 46.8 2.5

Black or African American alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,940 30.6 15.1 52.7 1.6

Asian alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,041 21.2 28.3 47.8 2.6

All remaining single races and all race combinations1 . . . . . . . . 1,719 28.9 19.4 49.9 1.9

White alone, not Hispanic or Latino . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19,862 30.8 20.2 46.0 2.9

Hispanic or Latino2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,230 31.7 17.6 49.3 1.5

Educational Attainment (25 years and over)

Not a high school graduate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,579 29.2 14.7 54.2 1.9

High school graduate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,776 32.0 16.3 49.2 2.4

Some college or associate’s degree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,639 32.7 17.2 47.8 2.3

Bachelor’s degree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,188 25.8 28.3 43.2 2.7

Professional or graduate degree . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,045 20.2 35.2 42.8 1.9

Marital Status (15 years and over)

Married . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9,993 26.1 24.0 48.5 1.5

Widowed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 733 32.1 10.2 51.8 5.9

Divorced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,352 36.1 16.5 44.5 3.0

Separated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 997 46.5 13.2 38.8 1.4

Never married . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12,965 30.3 18.8 47.6 3.3

Labor Force Status (16 years and over)3

Employed (civilian) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16,951 29.5 22.3 46.2 2.0

Unemployed......................................... 2,291 33.3 17.0 46.5 3.2

Not in labor force . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8,091 30.8 15.1 50.1 4.0

Type of Move/Distance Moved4

Intracounty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23,150 29.9 10.5 57.6 2.0

Intercounty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11,731 31.0 34.8 31.2 2.9

Less than 50 miles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,720 33.4 22.7 41.5 2.5

50 to 199 miles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,458 29.6 34.3 32.1 3.9

200 to 499 miles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,661 25.2 48.0 23.0 3.7

500 miles or more . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,892 31.7 47.5 18.4 2.4

From abroad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,036 30.3 43.3 22.4 4.0

1

 Includes American Indian and Alaska Native alone, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, and Two or More Races. 2

 Hispanics or Latinos may be of any race. 3

 Members of the Armed Forces are excluded due to small sample size. 4

 Distance moved is only calculated for intercounty moves.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement, 2013.
4 U.S. Census Bureau

well.9 “Health reasons” is a popular response for this group and is 

contained in the other collapsed 

category.

Black or African American 

respondents reported the

highest housing-related

reason for move of any race.

Over half of Black or African

American movers said their main 

reason for moving was housingrelated, which is higher than Whites 

or Asians.10 Asian movers reported 

the highest percentage of jobrelated reasons with 28.3 percent. 

“New job or job transfer” accounts 

for the largest percentage of jobrelated reasons for this group with 

14.8 percent.

In 2013, 49.3 percent of Hispanic 

or Latino movers of any race gave 

a housing-related reason, and 

31.7 percent gave a family-related 

reason for moving. By comparison, 

among non-Hispanic Whites, 46.0 

percent reported a housing-related 

reason and 30.8 percent a familyrelated reason.11

9 The other reason for move estimates for 

18- to 24-year-olds and those 65 years and 

over were not statistically different. 10 Federal surveys now give respondents 

the option of reporting more than one race. 

Therefore, two basic ways of defining a race 

group are possible. A group such as Asian 

may be defined as those who reported Asian 

and no other race (the race-alone or singlerace concept) or as those who reported Asian 

regardless of whether they also reported 

another race (the race-alone-or-in-combination concept). This report shows data using 

the first approach (race alone). This report 

will refer to the White-alone population as 

White, the Black or African American-alone 

population as Black or African American, 

the Asian-alone population as Asian, and 

the White-alone-non-Hispanic population 

as White, not Hispanic or Latino. Use of the 

single-race population does not imply that it 

is the preferred method of presenting or analyzing data. The Census Bureau uses a variety 

of approaches. In this report, the term “White, 

not Hispanic or Latino” refers to people who 

are not Hispanic and who reported White and 

no other race. The Census Bureau uses nonHispanic Whites as the comparison group for 

other race groups and Hispanics. Because

Hispanics may be any race, data in this report 

for Hispanics overlap with data for racial 

groups. 11 Family-related reasons for move were 

not statistically different for Hispanic or

Latinos of any race and non-Hispanic Whites. 

Bachelor’s degree and 

professional or graduate 

degree holders had different 

reason for move distributions 

than those with lower levels of 

educational attainment.

Movers 25 years and over at the 

highest rungs of the educational 

attainment ladder gave job-related 

reasons as their second most common choice. Among movers with 

a bachelor’s degree, 28.3 percent 

said their move was the result of a 

job-related reason. Professional or 

graduate degree holders were even 

higher, with 35.2 percent reporting 

job-related reasons. Movers with 

lower levels of educational attainment were more inclined to report 

family-related reasons for moving. 

For those in the categories of not a 

high school graduate, high school 

graduate (or equivalent), and some 

college or associate’s degree, 

family-related reasons were second 

only to housing-related. Some college or associate’s degree holders 

and high school graduates had 

the highest percentage of familyrelated reasons, at 32.7 percent 

and 32.0 percent, respectively. 

These estimates are not statistically different. People who did not 

graduate from high school attributed 54.2 percent of their moves 

to housing-related reasons. This 

was in stark contrast to the 42.8 

percent of professional or graduate 

degree holders.12 

Among all marital statuses, 

married respondents were 

the least likely to move for a 

family-related reason.

About 47 percent of movers separated from their spouses gave a 

family-related reason for moving, 

the highest of any marital status 

for persons 15 years and over. This 

can primarily be attributed to the 

“change in marital status” detailed 

12 Housing-related reasons for professional 

or graduate degree holders and those with 

a bachelor’s degree were not significantly 

different.

reason, with 22.4 percent. Married 

respondents had the lowest familyrelated move percentage at 26.1 

percent, but led the job-related 

category at 24.0 percent. Widowed 

respondents reported the highest percentage of other reasons 

with 5.9 percent. Not surprisingly, 

health reasons played a critical role 

for widows, who tend to be older. 

Job-related reasons for moving 

were more common among 

employed civilians than 

unemployed individuals and 

those not in the labor force. 

For persons 16 years and over, half 

of those not in the labor force provided a housing-related reason for 

move.13 Job-related moves were the 

lowest for this group: 15.1 percent. 

Employed civilians had the highest 

percentage of job-related reasons, 

22.3 percent, while the unemployed had the highest familyrelated reasons with 33.3 percent. 

It is important to consider that the 

detailed reason “to look for work 

or lost job” is located in the jobrelated reason for move. Therefore, 

an unemployed respondent could 

accurately provide a job-related 

reason for moving. 

TYPE OF MOVE/DISTANCE 

MOVED

One of the common ways of classifying moves are the categories: 

intracounty, intercounty, and from 

abroad. Intracounty movers are 

people who moved within the same 

county. Intercounty mover refers 

to people who moved from one 

county to another. This encompasses those who moved to a different county within the same state 

and to a different state. The “from 

abroad” category describes people 

who lived in a different country

1 year ago and moved into the 

United States. 

13 Members of the Armed Forces were 

excluded from this analysis due to their

relatively small sample size. 
U.S. Census Bureau 5

Intracounty movers moved 

more for housing-related 

reasons, while intercounty 

movers and movers from 

abroad moved for job-related 

reasons.

Intracounty movers reported the 

highest percentage of housingrelated moves with 57.6 percent. 

Essentially, these people are settled 

in their area, and are just changing homes. By comparison, just 

31.2 percent of intercounty movers gave a housing-related reason. 

Job-related reasons were more 

common among intercounty movers and movers from abroad than 

intracounty movers. The percentage of intercounty movers that 

gave a job-related move was 3.3 

times higher than the percentage of 

intracounty movers (34.8 percent 

and 10.5 percent, respectively). 

This difference highlights the relationship between why people move 

and where. If the move is instigated by a housing reason, such 

as “wanted a new or better home/

apartment,” “wanted own home, 

not rent,” or “foreclosure/eviction,” 

then moving to a new residence 

located within the same county 

seems likely. In fact, it might even 

be preferable because the respondent possesses personal knowledge of potential housing choices 

and neighborhoods in the area, 

which could prove beneficial. On 

the other hand, people who moved 

for job-related reasons may not be 

as focused on the housing stock. 

Instead, they are more concerned 

with housing in relation to a place 

of employment. If a respondent 

accepted a job located in another 

county, they would be more likely 

to move closer to that county or 

stay in the same house/apartment. 

Moving within the county is a possibility, but might not be worth the 

additional resource costs associated with moving. The same argument can be made for movers from 

abroad. Moving to another country 

because of housing-related reasons 

such as “foreclosure/eviction” or 

“wanted cheaper housing” seems 

unlikely given that there are probably other houses or apartments in 

the origin country that fulfill these 

requirements. 

Job-related reasons were most 

common among long distance 

moves, while housing-related 

reasons were the preferred 

choice for shorter moves.

How far a person moved, otherwise known as distance moved, is 

calculated for intercounty movers.14 There are four basic distance 

moved categories: less than 50 

miles, 50 to 199 miles, 200 to 

499 miles, and 500 miles or more. 

Among those who completed an 

intercounty move, the reason why 

they moved played an important 

role in the distance moved. Based 

on the 2013 results, intercounty 

movers were more likely to report 

job-related reasons than family or housing as move distances 

increased. About 18 percent of 

people who moved 500 miles 

or more gave a housing-related 

reason. By comparison, 41.5 percent of moves less than 50 miles 

were for housing-related reasons. 

These results indicate a preference 

to remain relatively close to the 

county of residence 1 year ago if 

the person moved for a housingrelated reason. Estimates for jobrelated reasons, however, suggest 

a likelihood to move longer distances. About 48 percent of moves 

500 miles or more occurred due to 

a job-related reason.15 By contrast, 

14 Distance moved is calculated by 

measuring the distance from the previous 

county’s population center to the current 

county’s population center. More information 

on this calculation is available on page 10, 

footnote 14, of the Current Population Report 

titled “Geographical Mobility: 2002 to 2003”

at <www.census.gov/prod/2004pubs

/p20-549.pdf>. 15 The estimates for job-related moves 

200 to 499 miles and 500 miles or more were 

not significantly different.

only 22.7 percent of moves less 

than 50 miles were for job-related 

reasons. 

HOUSEHOLDER’S REASON 

FOR MOVE

One method of analyzing reason 

for move estimates is to limit 

the data to householders.16 This 

approach reduces the occurrence of 

a reason for move being assigned 

to a family member or someone 

else in the household. An example 

of assigning someone a reason for 

move would be a child who moved 

because his or her parent accepted 

a job offer. In this scenario, the 

child is not moving because they 

had a “new job or job transfer.” 

Instead, the parent’s reason was 

assigned to other family members. 

Narrowing the results to householders is an attempt to eliminate 

the influence caused by such 

assignments.

Figure 2 provides a breakdown of 

the householder’s individual reason 

for move within the collapsed categories. Two of the most selected 

reasons were in the housing-related 

category. “Wanted new or better 

home/apartment” accounted for 

14.0 percent of reasons and “other 

housing” was 14.6 percent.17 These 

two reasons comprised a greater 

percentage (28.6 percent) of the 

reason for move distribution than 

all five of the job-related reasons 

combined (20.6 percent), indicating their importance. Among the 

remaining reasons in the housing category, 8.4 percent “wanted 

cheaper housing,” and 1.8 percent 

moved due to a foreclosure or 

eviction.18

16 Householders are determined by the 

relationship to householder statuses of 

householder (spouse present), other family 

householder, and nonfamily householder. 17 Estimates for “wanted new or better 

home/apartment” and “other housing” were 

not significantly different. 18 The “foreclosure/eviction” reason for 

move estimate was not significantly different 

from “to look for work/lost job.”
6 U.S. Census Bureau

Figure 2.

Householders' Reason for Move: 2012 to 2013

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement, 2013. 

Percent

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Change in marital

status

Other family reason

To establish own

household

Retired

To look for work or

lost job

Other job-related 

reason

To be closer to work/

easier commute

New job or job transfer

Foreclosure/eviction

Wanted better 

neighborhood/less crime

Wanted own home,

not rent

Wanted cheaper housing

Wanted new or better

home/apartment

Other housing reason

Natural disaster

Change of climate

Health reasons

To attend or leave

college

Other reasons

Family-related Job-related Housing-related Other

Family-related

Housing-related

Job-related

Other
U.S. Census Bureau 7

In regards to family-related reasons, 12.4 percent of householders 

said their main reason for moving 

was to “establish own household.” 

This is not statistically different from the 12.1 percent who 

responded with an “other family” 

reason. The lowest family-related 

reason was “change in marital 

status,” with 4.9 percent. This category includes any type of change 

in marital status and is not limited 

to marriage or divorce. Becoming 

a widow or separated both qualify 

for placement in this reason.

Most job-related reasons were not 

selected a great deal by householders. The only choices that were 

selected a considerable amount 

were “new job or job transfer” 

and “to be closer to work/easier 

commute,” at 9.4 percent and 6.4 

percent, respectively. The remaining job-related reasons of “to look 

for work or lost job,” “retired,” and 

“other job-related reason” combined for a total of 4.8 percent of 

householders’ reason for move 

responses. 

None of the individual responses 

in the collapsed “other” category 

account for a particularly large 

percentage of reasons why householders moved either. Out of all 

householders that moved, 2.4 

percent gave a reason in the “other” 

collapsed category. The two largest reasons within the collapsed 

category were “other reasons” 

with 1.3 percent and “to attend or 

leave college” with 0.6 percent. 

The estimate for “to attend or leave 

college” suggests very few householders moved for the purpose of 

attending or leaving college. The 

“other reasons” response is too 

vague to be helpful. An extremely 

small percentage of householders moved for a change of climate, health reasons, or a natural 

disaster.

HISTORICAL REASON FOR 

MOVE DATA

This portion of the report concentrates on historical reason for 

move data for all movers.19 It is 

broken into two sections, individual 

reasons and collapsed categories, 

because tracking the change of up 

to 19 reasons over the course of 13 

years can be difficult.20 To reduce 

the amount of confusion, the first 

portion concentrates on individual 

reasons for 1999 and 2013. The 

second section narrows the individual reasons into the four collapsed 

categories while expanding the 

years from 1999 through 2013. 

Individual Reasons

Before proceeding with the individual reason for move comparison, categories from 2013 need to 

match those from 1999 as closely 

as possible. In an attempt to 

achieve this, the 2013 estimate for 

“foreclosure/eviction” was grouped 

into the “other housing” reason and 

“natural disaster” was grouped into 

“other.”21 Between 2012 and 2013, 

35.9 million people 1 year and over 

moved to a different residence. 

This represents a decline of 6.7 million from the 42.6 million movers 

19 The historical reason for move table 

(A-5) is available at <www.census.gov/hhes

/migration/data/cps/historical.html>. 20 Over time, some reasons were added 

to the list of responses. To see the full list 

of reasons for moving and when they were 

added, see Appendix Table 1 in the Appendix 

of this report. 21 This approach assumes respondents 

from 1999 selected “other housing” if 

they moved for a foreclosure- or evictionrelated reason and “other” if their move was 

prompted by a natural disaster. 

between 1998 and 1999. Over this 

period, the mover rate dropped 

from 15.9 percent in 1999 to

11.7 percent in 2013. 

Among individual reasons presented in Figure 3, “wanted new 

or better home/apartment,” “other 

housing reason,” and “other family 

reason” were selected most in 2013 

with 14.8 percent, 15.8 percent, 

and 14.8 percent, respectively.22, 23

These three reasons were given 

by 45.4 percent of movers. The 

same three individual reasons were 

also given most often by movers 

in 1999. The distribution shows 

“wanted new or better home/

apartment” was the top choice, 

with 20.8 percent, followed by 

“other family reason” (11.6 percent) 

and “other housing reason” (11.1 

percent). “Other family reason” 

and “other housing reason” were 

not significantly different from 

one another. In 1999, these three 

responses were given by 43.5 

percent of movers. The fact that 

this estimate has remained over 40 

percent suggests that the top three 

reasons continue to play an integral 

part in the decision making process 

for moving. 

Several reasons did not differ significantly between 1999 and 2013. 

Estimates for “new job or job transfer,” “retired,” and “other job-related 

reason” are examples where the 

estimates are not significantly different. Most reasons changed over 

time, which may indicate a shift in 

importance. A greater percentage 

22 The 2013 estimates for “wanted new 

or better home/apartment” and “other family 

reason” are not significantly different. 23 Foreclosure/eviction accounted for 

1.8 percentage points of the 15.8 percent of 

“other housing reason” in 2013. Foreclosure/

eviction was not an option for 1999 reason 

for move responses. 
8 U.S. Census Bureau

Figure 3.

Reason for Move: 1999 and 2013

* Indicates significant difference between 1999 and 2013. 

1 The 2013 "foreclosure/eviction" estimate was grouped with "other housing reason" and the "natural disaster" estimate was grouped with 

"other reasons" for better comparability with 1999 data.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement, 1999 and 2013. 

Percent

0 5 10 15 20 25

1999

2013

Other housing reason1

Wanted new or better home/apartment

Other family reason

To establish own household

New job or job transfer

Wanted cheaper housing

Wanted own home, not rent

To be closer to work/easier commute

Change in marital status

Wanted better neighborhood/less crime

Other job-related reason

To look for work or lost job

Other reasons1

Retired

To attend or leave college

Health reasons

Change of climate *

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

*
U.S. Census Bureau 9

of movers left their previous 

residence to establish their own 

household in 2013 than 1999. “To 

establish own household” increased 

from 7.7 percent to 10.5 percent. 

“Other housing” also went up from 

11.1 percent to 15.8 percent.24 In 

some cases, the change went in 

the opposite direction. “Wanted 

better home/apartment” decreased 

from 20.8 percent to 14.8 percent. 

24 The “other housing” reason is a catchall category, where a respondent’s primary 

reason for moving was housing-related in 

nature but did not fit into any of the provided 

housing choices.

“Wanted own home, not rent” 

decreased from 7.8 percent to 5.8 

percent. This suggests that establishing their household and other 

housing reasons were more important to respondents than improving 

their housing situation or owning 

their home in 2013 relative to 

1999. 

Collapsed Categories

Figure 4 contains a visual representation of the collapsed reason for 

move categories for 1999 through 

2013. Overall, the order of the 

collapsed category distribution did 

not change over time. Housingrelated reasons were the most 

common, family-related were the 

second most common, job-related 

were third, and other reasons were 

last. However, within these collapsed categories, some change 

over time is evident. The housingrelated reason category reached 

its peak in 2004 with 52.8 percent 

of all reason for move responses. 

This estimate reached its lowest 

point of 40.1 percent in 2008. 

Because they are all part of the 

Figure 4.

Collapsed Reason for Move: 1999–2013

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement, 1999–2013. 

Percent

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Other

Housing-related

Job-related

Family-related

1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
10 U.S. Census Bureau

same distribution, change within 

one category necessitates change 

in at least one other category. When 

housing-related reasons were at 

their highest point in 2004, familyrelated reasons reported its low of 

24.3 percent. According to estimates from 2012 and 2013, other 

reasons experienced historic lows 

of 1.9 percent and 2.3 percent. 

It appears that housing-related 

reasons became more important 

for movers between 2011 (44.9 

percent) and 2012 (49.4 percent), which detracted from other 

reasons. 

REASON FOR MOVE 

COMPARISON: ANNUAL 

SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC 

SUPPLEMENT (ASEC) AND 

AMERICAN HOUSING 

SURVEY (AHS)

The AHS is another Census Bureau 

survey that collects data on reasons for moving. There are several 

differences between the AHS and 

the ASEC, both in terms of the surveys themselves and the reason for 

move question. The AHS is primarily concerned with housing topics, 

such as the physical condition of 

housing units, equipment breakdowns, and information regarding 

the nation’s housing inventory. 

The ASEC is a person-based survey, concentrating on economic 

and demographic characteristics 

of respondents and their families. 

This leads to major differences in 

the sample design between the 

surveys. The last AHS sample frame 

was drawn in 1985 and that frame 

was used when the survey was 

conducted in 2011. The same housing units are sampled when the survey is conducted. There are some 

additions or modifications conducted to account for differences in 

the housing composition between 

1985 and current conditions. The 

current ASEC data uses information 

collected from the 2000 Decennial 

Census as a sampling frame, with 

a new set of respondents surveyed 

every year.25 

The differences mentioned above 

result in small differences in the 

sample frame, but the reason for 

move comparison has its own 

complications. First, the questions 

and responses are not directly 

comparable. The AHS version gives 

respondents the option to select 

“all reasons are of equal importance,” while ASEC forces a single 

choice. Movers are required to 

select their main reason for moving; otherwise, a reason is allocated 

to them. Second, the AHS includes 

25 The 2012 ASEC is the first year using 

population controls from the 2010 Census. 

Migration estimates using 2010 population 

controls were created retroactively for the 

historical tables, including Table A-5 reason 

for move. This section of the report uses the 

2000 population control estimates. This note 

is mainly for informational purposes only, as 

the difference between the reason or move 

estimates using the two controls is extremely 

small, typically less than 0.1. 

Table 2.

Reason for Move Response Crosswalk: ASEC and AHS

ASEC Reason for Move AHS Reason for Move1

Family-Related Family-Related

Change in marital status Married, widowed, divorced, or separated

To establish own household To establish own household

Other family reason Other, family/personal related

Job-Related Job-Related

New job or job transfer New job or job transfer

To look for work or lost job No equivalent reason

To be closer to work/easier commute To be closer to work/school/other

Retired No equivalent reason

Other job-related reason Other, financial/employment related

Housing-Related Housing-Related

Wanted own home, not rent Change from owner to renter OR renter to owner

Wanted new or better home/apartment Needed a larger house or apartment; wanted a better quality house (apartment)

Wanted better neighborhood/less crime No equivalent reason

Wanted cheaper housing Wanted lower rent or less expensive house to maintain

Foreclosure/eviction Foreclosure; evicted from residence

Other housing reason Other housing-related reasons

Other Reason Other Reason

To attend or leave college No equivalent reason

Change of climate No equivalent reason

Health reasons No equivalent reason

Natural disaster Disaster loss (fire, flood, etc.)

Other reasons Private displacement; forced to leave by the government; other

1

 Some AHS reasons do not fit entirely into a single ASEC reason. For example, “to be closer to work/school/other” could be coded in the ASEC as “To be closer 

to work/easier commute,” “to attend or leave college,” or “other reasons” depending on what the respondent wanted to be closer to. 

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement; American Housing Survey.
U.S. Census Bureau 11

reasons not provided by the ASEC, 

and vice versa. Examples from 

the AHS include private displacement and being forced to leave by 

the government. Third, there are 

cases where a category from the 

AHS could potentially fit into two 

or more categories in the ASEC. 

One example is the response “to be 

closer to work/school/other.” In the 

ASEC, it could be classified as “to 

be closer to work/easier commute” 

or “other reasons,” depending 

on which reason the respondent 

intended to highlight. 

In order to compare results across 

surveys, Table 2 shows one possible crosswalk between the two 

surveys.26 For purposes of this 

comparison, attempts were made 

to maintain the highest level of 

detail possible. This decision 

mainly applied to the AHS reason 

“to be closer to work/school/other,” 

because it could be placed in either 

job-related or other reasons. All 

other AHS responses that could fit 

into two individual reasons would 

be placed into the same collapsed 

reason for move category. “To be 

closer to work/school/other” was 

placed into the AHS job-related category. The most recent data available for the AHS is 2011.27 Because 

the AHS only surveys householders, 

estimates from the 2011 ASEC for 

householders are used to provide 

the best possible comparison.28 

Figure 5 indicates that the collapsed ASEC reason for move distribution was more concentrated in a 

26 This exercise is intended purely for 

informational purposes and in no way acts 

as a standard approach used by the Census 

Bureau. 27 The number of respondents that did 

not report a main reason for moving was 

883,000. An additional 782,000 gave “all 

reported reasons equal.” Because the ASEC 

requires respondents to select a reason, these 

AHS cases were excluded from the comparison. Combined, they compose 10.4 percent 

of AHS mover cases. 28 ASEC householders include the following relationships to the householder: 

householder, spouse present; other family 

householder; and nonfamily householder. 

single category than the AHS. Housing-related reasons were the most 

common for both surveys, albeit to 

different degrees. The 2011 ASEC 

estimate was 44.0 percent of all 

movers, compared with 33.6 percent from the AHS. Family-related 

reasons were reported second most 

and were not significantly different 

between surveys, with 27.2 percent 

for the ASEC and 26.4 percent for 

the AHS. A greater percentage of 

people gave employment-related 

reasons for moving in the AHS 

(24.7 percent) than the ASEC (19.6 

percent).29 Finally, a greater share 

of people attributed their primary 

reason for moving to other reasons in the AHS than the ASEC. It 

accounted for 15.2 percent of AHS 

responses. This is about 1.7 times 

29 The AHS collapsed categories of familyrelated reasons and job-related reasons were 

not significantly different. 

higher than the ASEC estimate of 

9.2 percent. Despite differences in 

survey methodology and reason for 

move responses, the AHS and ASEC 

had comparable rankings across 

the four collapsed categories. 

SOURCES OF THE DATA

The population represented (the 

population universe) in the ASEC 

is the civilian noninstitutionalized 

population living in the United 

States. Members of the Armed 

Forces living off post or with their 

families on post are included if 

at least one civilian adult lives in 

the household. The institutionalized population, which is excluded 

from the population universe, is 

composed primarily of the population in correctional institutions and 

nursing homes (94.3 percent of the 

4.0 million institutionalized people 

Figure 5.

Reason for Move by Survey (Collapsed Categories): 2011

(In percent. Universe: Householders 15 years and over who moved within the 

last year)

* Indicates significant difference between ASEC and AHS estimate.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic 

Supplement, 2011; American Housing Survey, 2011.

AHS

ASEC

Family-related Job-related* Housing-related* Other*

27.2

44.0

19.6

24.7

26.4

15.2

9.2

33.6
12 U.S. Census Bureau

in Census 2010). Most of the data 

from the ASEC were collected in 

March (with some data collected in 

February and April), and the data 

were controlled to independent 

population estimates for March 

2013. For annual time series from 

the CPS, data collected in the 2013 

ASEC may be compared with data 

collected in the March supplement 

to the CPS in prior years. 

ACCURACY OF

THE ESTIMATES

Statistics from surveys are subject to sampling and nonsampling 

error. All comparisons presented 

in this report have taken sampling 

error into account and are significant at the 90 percent confidence 

level. This means the 90 percent 

confidence interval for the difference between the estimates being 

compared does not include zero. 

Nonsampling errors in surveys 

may be attributed to a variety of 

sources, such as how the survey 

is designed, how respondents 

interpret questions, how able and 

willing respondents are to provide correct answers, and how 

accurately the answers are coded 

and classified. The Census Bureau 

employs quality control procedures 

throughout the production process, 

including the overall design of 

surveys, the wording of questions, 

review of the work of interviewers 

and coders, and statistical review 

of reports, to minimize these 

errors. 

The CPS weighting procedure uses 

ratio estimation, whereby sample 

estimates are adjusted to independent estimates of the national 

population by age, race, sex, and 

Hispanic origin. This weighting 

partially corrects for bias due to 

undercoverage, but biases may still 

be present when people who are 

missed by the survey differ from 

those interviewed in ways other 

than age, race, sex, and Hispanic 

origin. How this weighting procedure affects other variables in the 

survey is not precisely known. All 

of these considerations affect comparisons across different surveys or 

data sources.

For further information on statistical standards and the computation 

and use of standard errors, go to 

<www.census.gov/apsd/techdoc

/cps/cpsmar13.pdf> or contact

the Census Bureau’s Demographic 

Statistical Methods Division via 

e-mail at <dsmd.source.and

.accuracy@census.gov>.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Detailed geographical mobility/

migration tables from the 2013 

ASEC are available on the Census 

Bureau’s Web site <www.census

.gov>. Once on the site, go

to the “People” section at 

the top of the page and click

“Geographical Mobility/Migration.” 

From the “Geographical Mobility/

Migration” page, use the “Quick 

Links” for “CPS Data on Migration/

Geographical Mobility.” Under the 

“Geographical Mobility: 2012 to 

2013” subheading, select “Detailed 

Tables.” The reason for move tables 

are 23 through 27. To access the 

historical reason for move table, 

return to the CPS migration page 

and scroll to the bottom where it 

says “Historical Time Series Tables.” 

The historical reason for move 

table is A-5. 

CONTACTS

David Ihrke

Sehsd.migration@census.gov

For additional information, contact 

the U.S. Census Bureau Customer 

Services Center at 1-800-923-8282 

(toll free) or visit <ask.census.gov>. 

SUGGESTED CITATION

Ihrke, David. 2014. Reason

for Moving: 2012 to 2013.

Current Population Reports.

P20-574. U.S. Census Bureau,

Washington, DC.
U.S. Census Bureau 13

APPENDIX

CHANGES TO RESPONSE 

CATEGORIES

What is the main reason people 

move? What seems like an easy 

question to answer actually contains a complex, continuously 

changing answer. Achieving an 

adequate list of reasons why 

people move is an ongoing process, often requiring direct respondent feedback and analysis. A few 

changes occurred in 1998, the first 

year the question was asked.30

Originally, there were 15 responses 

in the survey. After data collection 

was completed, analysts noticed 

that variations of “wanted cheaper 

housing” and “health reasons” 

were common write-in responses. 

These answers were removed from 

the “other” write-ins and given 

their own listing. Other changes 

occurred when “to attend college” 

was added to “to leave college,” 

and “wanted better neighborhood” 

was added to “less crime.” These 

modifications were implemented 

and an updated response list was 

included for the 1999 survey.31

A complete list of the current 

reason for move responses is 

included in Appendix Table 1, 

along with a general description 

and the year the reason was added 

to the survey. There have been two 

additions since the changes from 

1999. A “natural disaster” category 

30 Earlier versions of a reason for move 

question appeared in the 1948 and 1963 

CPS. For additional information, see p. 230 of 

Long, Larry, (1988), Migration and Residential 

Mobility in the United States, New York:

Russell Sage Foundation. 31 Because of these differences, reason for 

move comparisons between 1998 and future 

years is not advised. 

was added in 2006. This was an 

attempt to capture displacement 

caused by the destructive forces of 

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, along 

with any future natural disasters. 

The most recent change occurred 

in 2011, when a “foreclosure/

eviction” reason was created from 

write-in responses. The “foreclosure/eviction” reason was added 

in response to the tumultuous 

economic climate and resulting 

housing situation. Census Bureau 

migration analysts working with 

ASEC data noticed foreclosure and 

eviction were becoming more common among write-in responses. 

In 2011, write-in responses that 

specified either foreclosure or eviction were placed into a separate 

category.32 While the creation of a 

separate “foreclosure/eviction” category provided a publicly available 

estimate for 2011, it likely underestimated the number of people who 

moved for foreclosure- or evictionrelated reasons. Respondents who 

completed the ASEC in 2011 were 

not given the opportunity to select 

foreclosure/eviction as a standard 

response. Only those who decided 

to utilize the write-in response 

could be included. People who did 

not use the write-in option but 

would have selected foreclosure/

eviction may have selected “other 

housing” instead. Unfortunately, 

there is no way to deconstruct the 

“other housing” reason in order to 

ascertain how many selected this 

32 “Foreclosure/eviction” was treated as 

an independent category for processing purposes. Movers who neglected to answer the 

reason for move question could be allocated 

to this category during imputation. For additional information, consult the CPS User Note: 

Addition of Foreclosure/Eviction Reason for 

Move Category at <www.census.gov/hhes

/migration/data/cps/usernote2012.html>. 

response because of a foreclosure 

or eviction. “Foreclosure/eviction” 

was added as a selectable category 

for all movers starting with the 

2012 ASEC. 

WRITE-IN RESPONSES

Every year, hundreds of movers 

write-in responses to the “other” 

reason for move category that they 

feel do not adequately fit in the 

standard reason for move options. 

These responses are compared with 

the definitions found in Appendix 

Table 1 of this report to ensure 

that they do not belong in one of 

the standard response categories. 

Some of the responses are coded 

to one of the provided options 

from the survey. For example, the 

response of “marriage” is placed 

in the first category of “change in 

marital status.” More complicated 

situations arise when multiple 

reasons are given. When this happens, the first answer (in order 

on the form) is selected to be the 

main reason. An exception to this 

rule exists when one reason likely 

caused another. One example of 

this is becoming ill and losing a 

job. In these cases, coding rules 

attempt to determine the chain of 

events. It can be argued that the 

person moved because they lost 

their job, but they would not have 

lost their job if they were healthy. If 

the chain of events cannot be sufficiently determined, then the first 

reason is taken. 

Write-in responses that cannot 

be confidently placed in another 

category are assigned to “other 

reasons.” These cases are generally too ambiguous to fit into the 

standard responses. An example is 
14 U.S. Census Bureau Appendix Table 1. Reason for Move Response by Description and Year Added to the Annual Social and Economic Supplement Reason for Move Description Year Added Family-Related Change in marital status Person moved because of family formation or dissolution resulting in a change to their marital status. 1998 To establish own household Moved out of an existing household in order to establish a separate one. 1998 Other family reason All other family-related reasons not listed above. 1998 Job-Related New job or job transfer Moved because of a new job or location of existing job moved. This can include military transfers. 1998 To look for work or lost job Moved in order to find work or due to a loss of employment. 1998 To be closer to work/easier commute Moved to be closer to their work and/or reduce their commuting time. 1998 Retired People who, after retirement from a job, changed their place of residence. 1998 Other job-related reason All other job-related reasons not listed above. 1998 Housing-Related Wanted own home, not rent People who wanted to own their home and not rent a house/apartment. 1998 Wanted new or better home/apartment People who wanted to move from their current home/apartment to a new, bigger/better house/apartment. 1998 Wanted better neighborhood/less crime1 Moved to improve the neighborhood of their residence and/or moved to an area with less crime. 1999 Wanted cheaper housing Moved to a cheaper/less expensive house/apartment. 1999 Foreclosure/eviction2 Moved due to a foreclosure or eviction. 2012 Other housing reason All other housing-related reasons not listed above. 1998 Other Reason To attend or leave college1 People who move to attend or leave college. 1999 Change of climate People who moved to a better climate. 1998 Health reasons People who moved for health-related reasons, either of the individual or another person. 1999 Natural disaster People who were forced to move due to a natural disaster. 2006 Other reasons All other reasons not listed. 1998 1 First appeared in 1998, but was reworded for 1999 and later years. 2 Coded from “other reasons” write-in responses in 2011. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement.
U.S. Census Bureau 15

the write-in response of “school.” If 

school refers to college, then this 

response would be coded as “to 

attend or leave college.” If a parent 

moved to enroll their children in 

a better school, then it would be 

coded as an “other family reason.” 

If the respondent was a child who 

moved to attend a different school, 

then it should be coded in “other 

reasons.” The exact reasoning 

behind such a move is unclear due 

to a lack of details in the response. 

Therefore, these cases are left in 

the “other reason” category. 

There are detailed cases that rightfully belong in “other ” because 

they do not adequately fit into 

another category. A common 

occurrence involves cohabiting 

with unmarried partners, such as 

a boyfriend, girlfriend, or fiancé. 

The official Census Bureau definition does not consider these 

unrelated persons to be members 

of the respondent’s family. Therefore, based on the definition, these 

cases cannot be placed in any of 

the family reasons. Instead, they 

are coded to the “other reason” 

response. Additional examples of 

responses commonly found in the 

“other reason” category include 

being a foreign exchange student, 

moving in with friends, foster care, 

being released from prison, and 

just because/wanted to.