Analysis of annual county-level migration estimates indicates that in recent decades, migrants to the rural South have persistently favored areas with specific attractions: urban access, high-tech jobs, and favorable climates. As migrants are younger and better educated than the overall population, such patterns exacerbate rural development…

A study of characteristics and motives of migrants to the Northern Great Plains surveyed 1,590 new residents in Nebraska and North Dakota. New arrivals were younger and had higher educational levels than existing residents. Most often cited reasons for moving were desire to be closer to relatives, safety concerns, and quality of the natural…

More people moved from nonmetro to metro areas than in the opposite direction during 1999-2000. Only the Midwest saw nonmetro growth. Nonmetro outmigration is concentrated among young adults leaving for college and jobs in cities, while inmigration among the college-educated dropped to near zero. Migration decisions of baby boomers will determine…

A quarter of nonmetro counties lost population in the 1990s, but population loss was not related to poverty rate or low educational levels, perhaps because low-skill workers can no longer expect better wages in urban areas. Population loss was related to low population density and remoteness (which decrease access to services), lack of natural…

During 1999-2001, the combined effects of far fewer rural inmigrants and many more outmigrants led to the first significant nonmetro population loss since the 1980s. The rural West showed the greatest percentage loss through migration, and only the rural Midwest showed a gain during the period. Nonmetro college graduates showed a large decline,…