The ongoing coronavirus pandemic, which has infected nearly 3 million Americans and killed over 130,000, has also caused millions to uproot themselves from their homes.
Three percent of U.S. adults have moved either temporarily or permanently and six percent say that someone has moved into their home because of Covid-19, according to new Pew Research Center data. In total, more than one in five adults either moved themselves, had someone move into their home, or knew someone who did due to the virus.
The most kinetic group by far was young people. Nearly one in ten Americans aged 18 to 29 said they had moved because of the pandemic, and many of them have returned home.
“One of the more striking findings is that young adults really are more affected than other groups across the board,” said D’Vera Cohn, a senior writer and editor at Pew. Generation Z is feeling the full force of the pandemic’s economic effects and many college students scrambled to arrange new housing in March as campuses closed en masse.
Reducing the risk of contracting the virus was the most common reason respondents said they moved (28%), followed by the closure of college campuses (23%) and to be with family (20%). The majority of those who moved (61%) said they’re now living with a family member.
Pew did not specifically ask respondents if their move was permanent or temporary, but only 9% said they had bought or rented a permanent new home, indicating that most of those who have been displaced don’t plan to stay in their new locations for the longterm.
The new data comes from Pew’s American Trends Panel survey of 9,654 adults conducted between June 4 and 10.
For more info, go to Bloomberg.com
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