Renter Mobility Surges While Homeowners Stay Put

Homeowners are staying put for longer periods. Meanwhile, renter mobility is growing. According to a recent report from Property Shark, renters are more mobile than homeowners in 100 of the largest cities in the U.S. To figure out how mobility rates have evolved, the report looks at long-distance homeowner and renter moves between 2019 and 2024. It found that, by 2024, renters were 3.7 times more likely to move than homeowners. Meanwhile, homeowner mobility actually declined in many metros.

In almost half of metros analyzed, homeowner mobility fell while renter mobility ticked up

In 41 of the 100 largest U.S. metros, homeowner mobility fell while renter mobility improved. Port St. Lucie, Fla.,  recorded the strongest gap between renter and homeowner mobility. There, owner mobility fell by 1.25 percentage points while renter mobility increased by 8.61 percentage points from 2019 to 2024. Similarly, in Winston Salem, N.C., owner mobility declined by 0.63 percentage points while renter mobility increased by 7.57 percentage points.

In some metros, both renter and homeowner mobility declined

In 20 of the 100 cities analyzed in the report, owner and renter mobility declined from 2019 to 2024. Newark, N.J., observed the steepest drop in homeowner mobility, with a 41.4% decline in home sales turnover. Cities, such as Chandler, Ariz., and Aurora, Colo., were also faced with rising costs, which kept both homeowners and renters locked in.