When Brittney Ross moved to Summerville, S.C., last fall, she quickly realized she was part of a trend.
Reminders of the state’s burgeoning population surround her: She and her boyfriend snagged an apartment in a newly constructed building, and she battles fierce traffic to commute to work. One bad day, her ordinarily 35-minute drive took more than two hours. Lines back up at her local Walmart, turning simple errands into unpredictable quests.
Despite the annoyances, Ross, 23, is enjoying her new home. She relocated from Auburn, Ala., to be closer to the beach and take advantage of a strong job market while she saves money to finish her degree in animal sciences.
“I just knew I wanted a big change from Auburn,” Ross said. “I definitely came here with blind faith that I would find a good opportunity for me, which thankfully I did. I’m really happy I did make that leap.”
Within days of moving, she landed a job in client care at an urgent care veterinarian, a role she finds more fulfilling and aligned with her interests than her last job at Whataburger.
People like Ross have been flooding to the Palmetto State in recent years, turning it into a top destination for out-of-state moves. While states like Texas and Florida have seen larger total numbers of transplants in recent years, South Carolina has taken on more new residents per capita, thanks to its relatively small population of 5.5 million. By that measure, it ranked second only to Idaho for in-migration between 2020 and 2024.
Last year, South Carolina was the top destination by a U-Haul measure of one-way moving equipment rentals, unseating Texas for the first time in three years. The state saw a net 68,000 domestic movers in 2024, according to Census Bureau data.
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Recent relocators and the real estate agents they’ve worked with cite a number of reasons for their moves: Job-related relocations are common, as major companies like BMW and Boeing expand their presence in the state. Northeasterners, in particular, often come seeking warmer weather and a lower cost of living. And the state’s coastal communities have long been magnets for retirees.
“I feel like we’ve become the 55+ capital of the East Coast,” said Mark Klim, a real estate agent at Realty One Group Coastal in Summerville, a fast-growing Charleston suburb. The Charleston area alone has more than half a dozen retirement communities.
He and fellow agent Jeff Gregg say they’re fielding regular inquiries from prospective relocators in states like New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, California and Washington, as well as retirees who gave Florida a try but were turned off by its mounting insurance costs and hurricane risks. Coastal South Carolina is prone to flooding, but hasn’t been hit by a major hurricane since 1989.
