When Chicagoans start to dream about moving, more often than not, they start looking at a city in the Sunshine State known as the “Waterfront Wonderland.”
With a population of just over 200,000, the coastal city in southwest Florida boasts an intricate network of canals that stretches 400 miles, lush golf courses and the chance to encounter manatees year-round.
Chicago residents are primarily setting their sights on Cape Coral when they consider relocating, according to a study from real estate company Redfin.
Cape Coral is ranked as one of the top metros U.S. homebuyers are looking to move into, with most of the city’s prospects hailing from Chicago, according to Redfin data.
Florida has always been a hotspot for “snowbirds” in Chicago, said Mike Opyd, president and owner of Chicago real estate company RE/MAX NEXT. Opyd said Florida’s reputation as a place where older people and retirees flock to to spend their winters and final days is shifting.
“There’s a younger crowd, probably hearing about [Florida] from the parents,” Opyd said. “They’ve been going to Florida forever, and going, ‘Where would be cool to live in Florida?’ and it seems like Cape Coral might just be one of those areas.”
In the study, Redfin analyzed 2 million of its website users who explored homes for sale in different metro areas from April to June. Redfin considered users who viewed at least 10 homes in another area during the three-month period as potential movers, according to the study’s methodology.
Las Vegas tops the list as the most popular destination for U.S. homebuyers looking to relocate, with Phoenix; Tampa, Florida; Orlando, Florida; and Sacramento, California, following suit.
Despite these cities being prone to natural disasters like hurricanes and earthquakes, people are drawn to them because of their affordability, according to the study.
After living in the West Loop for 18 years, Mark Gonzales, a freelancer who has written for the Chicago Sun-Times, moved to Phoenix in May.
Falling in love with the city during a visit in the late-1980s, he said he eagerly embraced a job offer in the early 2000s that initially brought him to Phoenix for five years. Now, as he returns, Gonzales said he won’t miss Chicago winters.
“I was surprised at how nice it was,” Gonzales said of Phoenix. “It was different than what I thought where it was just a city isolated because it was out in the desert.”
Chicago is one of the top metro cities homebuyers are looking to leave, ranking No. 5 behind Washington, D.C.; Los Angeles; New York; and San Francisco, according to the study.
Opyd said what originally drew a lot of people to Chicago was being able to live close to downtown and have short commutes to their offices in the city, but the pandemic shifted this.
”With a lot of people changing to a hybrid lifestyle and working from home, I think a lot of people realize that they don’t need to be in Chicago proper,” Opyd said.
Chicago residents working remotely are taking stock of the cost of living and taxes in the city and looking to move to places like Arizona and Florida that are more cost-effective, Opyd added.
On the other hand, Denver is ranked as one of the top metros people are seemingly leaving, with most Denverites eyeing Chicago as their top city to relocate to, according to Redfin data.
Opyd said this may be because Denver residents see Chicago as a larger city with more job opportunities.
