Florida Popular for Midwesterners

Posted on Sep 29, 2015

Some say Southwest Florida is a prime spot for Midwesterners, and recently, a staggering number of them have been moving to the sunshine state.

About 20 percent of the nearly 60,000 people who moved to Southwest Florida between 2012 and 2013 came from the East Coast, more than any other region in the country, said the Naples Daily News in a recent article. In terms of people moving to Collier and Lee counties, about 40 percent are coming from other parts of the state, according to the Daily News. People see more opportunity here. There’s less traffic and crime is not as bad. Sometimes, it’s easier to change your career or find other opportunities for your family if you’re not switching states and more people are beginning to realize that.

But when it comes to people moving here from out of state, about 24 percent of them moved to Collier County from the East Coast. Eighteen percent came from the Midwest.

In Southwest Florida, Midwestern roots run deep. Naples was largely settled by Kentuckians, and people from Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois and Wisconsin. New York also has a big foothold here. Between 2005 and 2007, a large amount of people came to SWFL from New York. Between 2012 and 2013, more people moved to Collier and Lee counties from New York than any other state, except Florida, according to the Daily News.

The trend is also noticeable in different businesses that are popping up in Lee and Collier counties. For example, the popular Pennsylvania-based convenience store Wawa opened three stores in Lee County in April. And the Boston Red Sox have done spring training in Fort Myers since the 1990s.

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