(The Center Square) – A publicly-traded moving and storage company’s report says Florida was fourth among all states for most one-way destination sales.
U-Haul said only South Carolina, Texas and North Carolina had more.
In another annual report analyzing company sales, U-Haul listed seven metros in Florida with most volume of its one-way services among the top 25 in the country: Lakeland, Palm Bay, Jacksonville, Tampa, Sarasota, Fort Myers and Daytona Beach.
Nationally, U-Haul had the most one-way destination moves for Dallas-Fort Worth, Charlotte and Phoenix ahead of Lakeland. Palm Bay was eighth, followed by Jacksonville (11th), Tampa (12th), Sarasota (15th), Fort Myers (16th) and Daytona Beach (23rd).
U-Haul said Ocala in central Florida is among the nation’s 25 best-growth cities outside the larger metro areas.
“There are two main reasons people are moving to Ocala,” Brady Rome, U-Haul Company of Gainesville president, said in a news release. “The primary reason is cost of living, simply being that it’s lower than almost anywhere in the state. It allows housing to be a more affordable option for families packing up their U-Haul and moving to central Florida.
“The second reason is the job market, which remains strong with the addition of so many manufacturing jobs. The health care industry has also seen massive growth in the past year and is a driving force of employment. And you can’t go without mentioning Ocala is the ‘Horse Capital of the World.’ The equestrian center is huge and continues to bring people here.”
U-Haul also had high sales involving Kissimmee (third), Clermont (15th), Port St. Lucie (18th) and Panama City (21st).
The U-Haul Growth Index is measured by each state’s gain (or loss) of customers renting U-Haul equipment for a one-way move in a year.