Americans Moving Less, Getting Rooted

In the 1950s, nearly 1/5 of Americans moved each year. That trend is quickly reversing. Americans are now staying put in greater numbers than at any time since World War II, and experts have plenty of opinions on why that is.

1 minute read

January 28, 2010, 5:00 AM PST

By Tim Halbur


From the recession and lack of jobs to a new sense of community ties and rootedness, Americans are choosing to stay put and delay moving for a wide variety of reasons. A panel of experts including urbanist Richard Florida, economist Lawrence Katz, sociologist Katherine Newman, and demographer Peter Francese weighs in on what's tying Americans down, whether or not it will last, and what it all means for communities.

From Richard Florida: "One consequence of this is a new kind of class divide in America between the 'mobile' who have the resources and flexibility to pursue economic opportunity and the 'stuck' who are tied to places with weaker economies or where their personal economic prospects are more limited."

Thanks to Rebecca Sanborn Stone

Sunday, January 10, 2010 in New York Times

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