New Jersey Is Bleeding Residents and the 2025 Moving Data Finally Says the Quiet Part Out Loud 🚨

New Jersey Leading the Nation in Outbound Moves……Again

For the eighth straight year, New Jersey has done the impossible.

It finished #1 in the entire country for people leaving.

Again. 🥇➡️

According to the United Van Lines 2025 National Movers Study, 62.33 percent of all moves involving New Jersey were outbound. Only 37.67 percent were inbound. That makes New Jersey the most exited state in America, once again.

Not Florida.
Not California.
Not New York.

New Jersey.

If you have ever joked about “getting out of this state,” congratulations, you are not being dramatic. You are being statistically accurate. 📊 People love to argue that this is just a few retirees chasing sunshine or that it is “only people who can’t afford it.” The data destroys both of those excuses. Almost half of the people leaving New Jersey earn over $150,000 per year. 💰 Read that again. This is not a poverty exodus. This is a value judgment. People who can afford New Jersey are still choosing not to. 😬

It gets worse when you look at age. More than 67 percent of outbound movers from New Jersey are age 55 or older. 👴👵 That means the people who have lived here the longest, paid the most taxes, raised families, and built careers are the ones packing the trucks. 📦🚚 United’s own press release calls New Jersey a “launch state” for young professionals while confirming that the state is losing retirees.

Translation: people come here to grind, then they leave when they want to breathe. 😮‍💨 And no, this is not just a state level thing. It is hyper local. According to the 2025 metro data:

Bergen-Passaic is 73 percent outbound.
Newark is 67 percent outbound.
Monmouth-Ocean is 63 percent outbound.
Jersey City is 61 percent outbound.
Middlesex-Somerset-Hunterdon is 61 percent outbound.

These are not small towns in the middle of nowhere. These are core New Jersey markets. 🏙️ This is not a trend. This is a pattern. 🔁 When you look at why people are leaving, the story becomes even clearer.

The top reasons for leaving New Jersey are:

Job changes. 💼
Family. 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦
Retirement. 🏖️
Lifestyle. 🌴
Cost. 💸

Notice what is quietly sitting in the middle of that list.

Retirement.

One quarter of outbound New Jersey movers are leaving because they are done trying to make this state work on a fixed income. 😑 And “lifestyle” is just a polite way of saying “I’m tired.”

Tired of the traffic. 🚗
Tired of the taxes. 🧾
Tired of the congestion. 🚦
Tired of paying luxury prices for basic living. 🤦‍♂️

So where are people going instead? 🧭 The top inbound states for 2025 were Oregon, West Virginia, South Carolina, Delaware, Minnesota, Idaho, North Carolina, Arkansas, Alabama, and Nevada. The top inbound metro areas were places like Eugene-Springfield, Wilmington, Dover, Myrtle Beach, Punta Gorda.

Smaller cities. 🏘️
Lower cost of living. 💵
Less congestion. 🚶‍♂️
Less pressure. 😌

United’s own commentary says Americans are seeking a different pace of life and are moving to smaller cities and towns where housing is more affordable. That is corporate speak for “people are done paying for stress.” 😅 Here is the part that should really get your attention. 👀

New Jersey has ranked among the top outbound states for more than 15 years.

This is not a blip.
This is not COVID.
This is not temporary.

This is structural.

People are voting with their feet. 👣 And they are not coming back. If you are a New Jersey homeowner and any of this feels personal, it probably is. If you are over 50 and quietly thinking, “Why am I still doing this,” you are not behind. You are right on time. ⏰ Most people wait too long.

They wait until the house needs too much work. 🛠️
They wait until health forces the issue. 🏥
They wait until the market shifts. 📉
They wait until the move feels urgent instead of strategic. 😵

Then they regret not planning earlier. Leaving New Jersey is not just an emotional decision. It is a financial one. 🧠💰 Your house is likely your largest asset. How you sell it, when you sell it, and what condition you sell it in will directly affect:

How much cash you walk away with. 💵
How stressful your move is. 😰
How much flexibility you have in your next chapter. 🗺️

This is not something to wing.

If you are thinking about relocating, downsizing, or just exploring what life could look like outside New Jersey, the first step is understanding what your home is actually worth in today’s market.

Not Zillow.
Not your neighbor’s opinion.
Real numbers. 📈

At EscapeFromNewJersey.com, we help homeowners:

Sell traditionally for top dollar. 🏡
Sell as-is without repairs. 🧹
Time their sale with out-of-state moves. 🚛
Exit New Jersey cleanly and confidently. ✨

No pressure. No scripts. No nonsense. Just straight answers.

If New Jersey is starting to feel more like a trap than a home, you are not crazy and you are not alone. 🔒➡️🗝️

The data backs you up.

👉 Get a no-obligation home value review
👉 Talk through your timing and options
👉 Plan your exit on your terms, not the state’s

You do not have to leave tomorrow. But you probably should start planning. 😉