INDIANA — People are still moving to the Hoosier state, but some are packing up and leaving too.
According to a recent report from U-Haul, Indiana is in this year's top ten lists of states for one-way rentals thanks to people moving to Indiana.
However, another big moving company says that may be only part of the story.
“I moved at the end of 2022, just around September,” Sheri Bennett said. “I happened to get a job I wanted, my husband got a job he wanted.”
The Kentucky native now lives in Boone County, one of the fastest-growing counties in Indiana.
“A lot of the new friends I’ve met are people that are not from Indiana at all, it seems like lots of people move from all over the country actually,” Bennett said.
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Local realtors told WRTV they’ve seen that rise firsthand.
“In the few years, I’ve had more buyers coming into Indiana and not for jobs, just because of quality of life and affordability,” explained Nancy Mutchmore, a Realtor with F.C. Tucker.
She’s been in the field for more than two decades and has seen the changes in cities across Central Indiana.
“We’ve got several neighborhoods — Zionsville, Fishers, Carmel — that are ranked nationally.”
Numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau showed more than 44,000 people moved to Indiana from 2023 to 2024, the largest single-year growth since 2008.
However, according to a migration study from Atlas Van Lines, migration numbers balanced for the first time in decades, with about the same number of people leaving too.
“I’m seeing people moving specifically more for jobs. It’s interesting when people wonder what it's like to live in Indiana and once they are here, they are reluctant to leave,” Mutchmore said.
The Indiana Business Research Center at Indiana University projects population growth to slow, increasing just 5.6% percent over the next 40 years.
They predict the biggest growth will come from metro areas.
