Politics has a habit of catalyzing mass movements, and in recent years the American people have taken the term literally by vowing to leave the country if a certain candidate was elected president. That includes a few high-profile celebrities, stating they'd abandon the country for their European villas if Republican candidate Donald Trump was elected -- film producer Sharon Stone, actress and singer Barbra Streisand, and singer Cher. While those celebs may be able to jet out of the country anytime they want, the same can't be said for common American folks who can barely afford to buy a starter home in this market.
To find out whether the election has spurred any more people to move domestically or internationally, Redfin commissioned a nationally representative survey, conducted by Ipsos, among 1,005 U.S. adults on November 7 and 8, 2024.
According to the survey, 22% or more than one in five US residents said they’re more likely to move now that the election has passed. Yet, nearly the same percentage of people (21%) said they’d be less likely to move now that the election is over.
Given the election outcome, it’s unsurprising that Democrats are more likely than Republicans to say the election increased their likelihood of moving, though there were some Republicans in the mix. In all, 28% of Democrats said they are now more likely to move, compared to 16% of Republicans. Meanwhile, 17% of Democrats are now less likely to consider moving, compared with 20% of Republicans.
Of those who said they’re likely to move, more than a third (36%) said they’d consider moving to another country and 26% are thinking of moving to a different state.
Is It All Talk?
Mortgage professionals would care to know if those 22% who said they’ve been motivated to move due to the election passing are willing to put their money where their mouth is. According to the Redfin-commissioned survey, younger respondents, renters, and those earning less than $50,000 per year were more likely to say they’d consider moving now that the election is over.
More than one-third (34%) of respondents who are 18 to 34 years old said they’re more likely to move after the election, compared to 23% of respondents aged 35 to 54 and 9% of people over 55.
Nearly 30% of renters are more likely to consider moving now that the election is over, compared to 15% of homeowners.
Respondents earning under $50k per year were split on whether to stay or go with 27% being more likely to consider moving, while another 27% of those respondents are less likely to consider moving. Moving further up the income bracket, respondents are less likely to consider moving.
Of those who earn between $50k and $100k, 20% said they’d consider moving post-election. Those who earn above $100k per year yielded the same response, at 20%.
Overall, 22% of middle-income earners and 17% of higher-income earners are less likely to move, Redfin reports.
Who’s Buying?
A reported 17% of respondents who said they’re more likely to move post-election, say the results of the election have made them more likely to consider buying a new home. On the other hand, 12% say the results have made them more likely to consider selling their current home. Roughly the same share (13%) are now more likely to rent a home.
Notably, a separate Redfin-commissioned survey fielded in October showed nearly 25% of prospective first-time homebuyers were waiting until after the election to buy a home -- with one in six waiting to see if Trump’s plans for tackling “issues with affordable housing” are enacted.
For some the decision hinged on policies being proposed by the president-elect, while others were simply waiting for the political and financial uncertainty surrounding the election to pass. Last month, Redfin agents in several different parts of the country reported that many would-be buyers were sitting on the sidelines until after the election. Still, they expect activity to pick up around mid-November.
Moving Where?
Of the 22% of respondents who said they are more likely to move, 36% said they’re thinking of moving to a different country. In fact, more survey respondents chose “a different country” than any other type of location.
Only 26% of respondents who are likely to move said they’re thinking of moving to a different state.
Among Democrats who are more inclined to move now that the election has concluded, 59% are considering relocating to a different country, while 26% are contemplating a move to another state. In contrast, only 8% of Republicans with a similar inclination to move are open to moving internationally, with 21% considering relocating to a different state.
On a community level, many Americans prefer to live in neighborhoods where their political views are shared. A separate survey commissioned by Redfin found that 27% of U.S. residents would feel hesitant to live in an area where most neighbors hold different political views.
