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Millennials are the age group most likely to say that politics highly influence their decisions about moving to a new city, according to a new survey from Realtor.com®.
A third of millennials (33%) called national politics very or extremely influential in choosing where to live, compared with 23% across all age groups and a larger share than for Gen Z adults (25%), Gen X (21%), or baby boomers (16%), according to the poll released on Thursday.
As well, 28% of millennials say that they have considered moving because their political views don’t align with the majority of people where they live, compared with just 17% across all age groups and 20% for Gen Z, the youngest adult generation.
“While Gen Z is known for being very politically active, when it comes to making decisions about where to live, more millennials are likely to be in a phase of life where they are thinking about the type of community in which they want to buy a home and grow their roots,” says Realtor.com senior economic research analyst Hannah Jones.
“It makes sense that millennials, more than any other age group, think it is very important to live in a place in which most people share their political views,” adds Jones.
Liberals are most likely to consider politics when moving
The survey found that liberals are most concerned about the political views of their neighbors, with 34% of liberals saying it is very or extremely important to live in a place where most people share their political views, compared with 27% of conservatives and 15% of moderates.
Nearly a quarter of liberals (24%) have considered moving because their political views do not align with those of the majority of people where they live, while just 17% of Americans broadly have considered doing so.
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Still, many left-leaning millennials acknowledge that factors other than politics play an important role in deciding where to live.
“If I was moving to a new area, [politics] would certainly be a consideration. But I personally think there are other reasons, like work and family—those two things are higher priorities than politics,” says Nicholas Parés, a 36-year-old millennial working in information technology in Austin, TX.
Parés, who is registered to vote without party affiliation but identifies as liberal, last year moved from Denver to Austin with his girlfriend, to be closer to her family. Although both cities are known as liberal bastions, Parés tells Realtor.com that the move to a red state from a blue one has brought noticeable changes, some of them welcome.
“I meet far more Republicans than I used to,” he explains. “I don’t think it’s necessarily a bad thing. I think it’s been interesting to hear their perspective, and to build a deeper understanding of the Republican or conservative perspective has been really fascinating.”
Frequent voters rate politics higher when choosing where to live
The new survey found that frequent voters are more likely to be influenced by politics in their decisions on where to live, and they are more likely to feel their views align with the majority of the people where they live.
Among self-identified frequent voters, 31% think it is very or extremely important to live in a place where most people share their political views, compared with 17% of occasional voters and 8% of inactive voters.
Frequent voters are also more likely to feel their political views align with the majority of people where they live, with 48% saying that’s the case, compared with 30% of occasional voters and 18% of inactive voters.
Parés, who likes to stay informed on political topics and votes in every election, says that the issue of abortion gave him the most pause when considering his move to Texas, where abortion has been illegal in most cases since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.
“I’m sure it has stopped a lot of people from moving, or ever thinking of moving, to certain places,” says Parés, who opposes government bans on abortion. “There are many states where I think that national political conversation [on abortion] would stop them from moving, especially Texas.”
Nicholas Pares
On the plus side, Parés notes that his taxes are lower in Texas than in Colorado. Although he has also observed a lower quality of government services, he says the savings from lower taxes have allowed him to boost his charitable donations to nonprofits providing social services.
“It’s not like that stuff is gone, but the impetus really moves down to the individual, and that’s been a good thing. It’s been an interesting dimension,” he says.
Millennials are most likely to agree with their neighbors on politics
Among the generations, millennials were most likely to agree that their political views align with the majority of people where they live, with 41% saying that was the case, compared with 38% overall.
That might be evidence of their higher propensity for self-sorting along political lines. Asked about their most recent move, 20% of millennials said they had moved to an area that was more aligned with their political views, compared with 15% of Gen Z, 13% of Gen X, and 11% of boomers.
“Choosing where to live is often a complex decision, and for many Americans, especially millennials, local and national politics are factors that influence where they live,” says Realtor.com Chief Economist Danielle Hale. “With both local and national politicians making decisions that impact daily life, both socially and fiscally, it makes sense that many would prefer to live in areas where the politics align with their own beliefs. Some go so far as to consider moving to find that alignment.”
The poll was conducted by Morning Consult on behalf of Realtor.com on Sept. 13–14, 2024, among a national sample of 2,203 adults aged 18 and up. The survey was conducted online, and the data was weighted to approximate a target sample of adults in the U.S. based on gender, educational attainment, age, race, and region.