\nFlood-prone America is losing more residents than it\u2019s gaining for the first time since 2019, according to a new r<\/a>epo<\/a>r<\/a>t<\/a> from Redfin<\/a>, the real estate brokerage powered by Rocket. High-flood-risk counties saw 29,027 more people move out than in last year. By comparison, low-flood-risk counties saw 35,941 more people move in than out\u2014the largest gain since 2019.\n<\/p>\n
\nMajor hubs in coastal Florida, Texas, New York and Louisiana were driving forces behind the national net outflow last year. Miami-Dade County, where over one-third of homes face high flood risk, saw 67,418 more people move out than in\u2014the largest net outflow among the 310 high-flood-risk counties Redfin analyzed. Next comes Harris County, TX (home to Houston), which saw a net outflow of 31,165. In third place is Kings County, NY (home to Brooklyn), which saw a net outflow of 28,158. Also notably on the top 10 list with a net outflow of 4,950 is Orleans Parish, LA (home to New Orleans), where 99.1% of homes face high flood risk\u2014the highest share in the nation.\n<\/p>\n
\nMost of these counties have been seeing more people move out than in for years but some experienced an acceleration in this trend last year. For example, Miami\u2019s net outflow widened to 67,418 in 2024 from 50,637 in 2023\u2014the largest acceleration of any high-flood-risk county.\n<\/p>\n
\nThis is based on a Redfin analysis of domestic migration data from the U.S. Census Bureau (excludes immigration) and climate-risk scores from First Street. Redfin defines a high-risk county as one that ranks in the top 10% when it comes to the share of homes facing high flood risk\u2014in other words, counties with 23.7%-99.1% of homes facing high risk. Migration data for 2024 covers July 1, 2023-July 1, 2024. A \u201cnet outflow\u201d measures how many more people moved out of than into an area, while a \u201cnet inflow\u201d measures how many more people moved in than out.\n<\/p>\n
\nRedfin agents in flood-prone areas say high housing costs, climate risk, rising insurance premiums and politics are among the factors that have made people reluctant to stay or move in.\n<\/p>\n
\n\u201cA lot of people moved to Miami during the pandemic, thinking life would be a vacation,\u201d said local Redfin real estate agent Ozzie Linares. \u201cMany of those people are now leaving because they\u2019ve realized living here isn\u2019t a piece of cake\u2014the city has become increasingly expensive and extreme weather events are on the rise. We were just under a flash flood warning due to higher-than-normal king tides.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\nLinares said his homeowner\u2019s insurance premium has risen to $6,700 per year from less than $2,000 two years ago, and his flood insurance premium has climbed to $1,250 from around $400. Insurance premiums are rising across the country due to intensifying climate risk.\n<\/p>\n
\nSoaring insurance costs, HOA dues and condo special assessments have added insult to injury for buyers already contending with high home prices and mortgage rates\u2014especially in Florida.\n<\/p>\n
\nPinellas County, FL, which is on the Gulf Coast and home to St. Petersburg, last year experienced its first net outflow in many years. Local Redfin real estate agent Dawn Liedtke said this exodus intensified after Hurricane Helene hit at the end of 2024, causing an estimated $93 million in damage.\n<\/p>\n
\n\u201cA huge part of the Pinellas County population was forced to leave because their homes were flooded in Hurricane Helene,\u201d Liedtke said. \u201cIt made people reevaluate whether they want to live in an area with flood risk. A lot of sellers I worked with after the storm moved to non flood zones in neighboring Pasco County, but we also saw many people move out of state.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
Houston, Which Faces Multiple Climate Risks, Sees Exodus of Residents Intensify<\/b><\/p>\n
\nHarris County, TX saw its net outflow widen to 31,165 in 2024 from 22,035 in 2023\u2014the second biggest acceleration among high-flood-risk counties.\n<\/p>\n
\nNearly 1 in 3 (31.3%) homes face high flood risk in Harris County, but Houston also faces other climate risks, namely extreme heat\u2014100% of homes in Harris County face high heat risk. The area has also faced bouts of extreme cold, including the Great Texas Freeze of 2021, which caused widespread power outages.\n<\/p>\n
\n\u201cPeople are always nervous about flooding in Houston, but it\u2019s no longer the top concern like it was after Hurricane Harvey,\u201d said local Redfin Premier real estate agent Roze Swartz. \u201cI\u2019m working with a lot of home sellers who moved to Texas from the West Coast during the pandemic and now want to leave because Houston isn\u2019t what they expected\u2014they don\u2019t like the extreme heat or the politics. They want to go hiking or kayaking on a whim, but Houstonians pretty much stay indoors from May to September due to the heat. A lot of out-of-towners are cashing out their equity and moving back home.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\nAffordability is also a factor. Home prices in the Sun Belt, which includes Texas and Florida, exploded during the pandemic homebuying boom. They\u2019re no longer growing at breakneck speed but remain much higher than they were before the pandemic.\n<\/p>\n
\n\u201cA lot of people moved to Texas during the pandemic because it was relatively affordable, but property taxes and insurance costs have gone up so much that some homeowners are being forced to sell,\u201d Swartz said. \u201cI just met a seller who bought her home a year ago and now has to sell it because she can no longer afford her monthly payments, which isn\u2019t an uncommon situation. I even have one seller who went into foreclosure.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\nWhile some Houston residents are moving out of state, others are moving to the suburbs. Montgomery County, TX, a low-flood-risk county directly north of Houston, saw 23,919 more people move in than out last year\u2014the largest net inflow in the country. Just 14.7% of homes in Montgomery County face high flood risk.\n<\/p>\n
Some Flood-Prone Areas Are Still Seeing More People Move In Than Out<\/b><\/p>\n
\nAmong the 310 high-flood-risk counties Redfin analyzed, 132 saw more people move out than in last year. That means nearly all of the remaining 178 high-risk counties experienced net inflows (two counties saw net migration of 0). Many of the high-risk counties that saw net inflows are in Texas or Florida.\n<\/p>\n
\nSt. Johns County, FL (just south of Jacksonville) saw 11,661 more people move in than out last year\u2014the largest net inflow of any high-flood-risk county. Next comes Fort Bend County, TX (just outside of Houston), with a net inflow of 10,467, followed by Volusia County, FL (home to Daytona Beach), with a net inflow of 9,724.\n<\/p>\n
\nFlood-prone places with the biggest net inflows are on average more affordable than flood-prone places with the biggest net outflows, which may explain why there are still more people moving in than out.\n<\/p>\n
In Some Flood-Prone Areas, Residents Who Leave Are Replaced by Immigrants<\/b><\/p>\n
\nMany flood-prone areas are seeing more people move out than in domestically but continue to experience population growth. That\u2019s in large part due to immigration. Miami-Dade County\u2019s population jumped 2.3% to 2.8 million in 2024, outpacing national population growth. That can be explained by net international migration of 123,835\u2014the highest of any county in the nation. Six of the 10 high-flood-risk counties with the largest domestic net outflows in 2024 saw their overall populations grow.\n<\/p>\n
\n“Many of the Americans who left flood-prone areas last year were replaced by immigrants, who in the past were able to evacuate to shelters when disaster struck,\u201d said Redfin Chief Economist Daryl Fairweather<\/a>. \u201cBut with the government cracking down on immigration enforcement, some immigrants are now hesitant to leave their homes during storms because they are afraid they could be detained.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \nMany flood-prone areas saw their populations grow in 2024, but the Trump Administration\u2019s crackdown on immigration could reverse that trend in 2025. Linares, the Miami agent, said he has seen a significant decrease in international business over the past eight months.\n<\/p>\n \n\u201cBefore I had homebuyers from Venezuela, Colombia, Brazil\u2014any Spanish-speaking country you can think of,\u201d he said. \u201cThey are non-existent in Miami now. We\u2019re also seeing fewer people move in from Canada.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \nTo view the full report, including charts, more county-level data and a full methodology, please visit: https:\/\/www.redfin.com\/news\/climate-migration-real-estate-2025<\/a><\/p>\n About Redfin<\/b><\/p>\n \nRedfin is a technology-driven real estate company with the country’s most-visited real estate brokerage website. As part of Rocket Companies (NYSE: RKT), Redfin is creating an integrated homeownership platform from search to close to make the dream of homeownership more affordable and accessible for everyone. Redfin\u2019s clients can see homes first with on-demand tours, easily apply for a home loan with Rocket Mortgage, and save thousands in fees while working with a top local agent.\n<\/p>\n \nYou can find more information about Redfin and get the latest housing market data and research at Redfin.com\/news<\/a>. For more information about Rocket Companies, visit RocketCompanies.com<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n View source version on businesswire.com: <\/span>https:\/\/www.businesswire.com\/news\/home\/20251106803222\/en\/<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n Contact Redfin KEYWORDS:<\/b> Washington Louisiana Florida Texas New York United States North America<\/p>\n INDUSTRY KEYWORDS:<\/b> Environment Technology Construction & Property Natural Disasters Professional Services Software Data Analytics Data Management Residential Building & Real Estate<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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Redfin Journalist Services:
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Ally Forsell
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