Climate change migration: Where people are moving to escape wildfires, extreme flooding, and record heat

• The power and frequency of natural disasters are prompting some Americans to move.
• Former residents of Arizona and New York said fires and flooding pushed them to new states.
• Residents are struggling with rising home-insurance premiums in Florida, California, and Colorado.

Extreme weather events, including hurricanes, wildfires, and dangerous heat, have increased not only in frequency, but also in intensity over the past few decades — and are predicted only to get worse.

For some Americans, this has prompted a reevaluation of where to call home. "Climate migration" is a broad term, as some people move out of fear of what the future holds, while others move because circumstances force them to. Still, already some Americans are choosing where to live based on safety from volatile weather.

When 2017's Hurricane Irma destroyed a quarter of the Florida Keys' housing stock, 50-year residents Connie and Glenn Faast were the only house in their neighborhood with a roof still intact. It prompted them to move and seek refuge in the mountains of North Carolina.

"We thought it would be devastating when we left," Connie told Business Insider, "but when we pulled out of there, we were so, so relieved."

There are no current statistics on how many Americans are moving because of climate change, but a recent Zillow survey found it is a growing concern for homeowners.

Over 80% of prospective homebuyers said climate risk impacted their search, Zillow found.

Rising insurance premiums have also brought climate-related issues to the kitchen table, as residents of high-risk states such as Florida, California, and Colorado contend with premiums that have doubled or tripled.

Insurance executive Oscar Seikaly told BI that reinsurance companies, which insure the insurance companies, used to be able to reliably predict the impact of a natural disaster. That's not the case anymore.

"Predictions have not been as good as they should be in the last few years. Everything has been a surprise. They're in panic mode," he said.

Have you moved, or are you considering moving, because of extreme weather? We want to hear from you. Reach out to reporter Dan Latu at [email protected].

Read through BI's coverage of people who have moved because of the climate crisis.

I left Arizona for Kansas over fears of droughts

Retiree Marcia Flanagan lived in Arizona for 25 years before fears over extreme droughts and heat prompted her to move. Visiting family in the Midwest, she was overcome by the lush greenery of eastern Kansas and decided to make a new home.

She purchased a $70,000, two-bedroom house with two reservoirs within a 20-mile radius.

"When I saw that they were going to provide me with an unlimited supply of water, I was very happy," Flanagan told BI in May.

I left Brooklyn for Kansas City over concerns of future flooding

Hurricane Sandy's flooding in his Brooklyn neighborhood opened architect Jason Beury's eyes to New York City's future problems. In 2022, Beury and his partner packed up and headed west to a location they believe will be less exposed to extreme weather: Kansas City, Kansas.

"If you look at the whole country, Kansas City is probably one of the spots in the next few decades that will have a fairly mild experience of climate-change issues," Beury told BI in May.

They purchased a two-bedroom, two-bathroom brick house that sits on top of a hill for $206,000.

We used a spreadsheet to find our dream climate-resilient home: Utica, New York

Arizona residents Charles Matheus and Kelly Roberge, both in their 50s, were tired of living in fear of what might happen with increasing wildfires and droughts. They developed an Excel spreadsheet where they ranked locations based on projected climate resiliency, affordability, and local culture.

They bought a $225,000, three-bedroom house and now call Utica, New York, home, even if their new neighbors don't quite understand their decision.

"The locals always ask us, 'Why did you move here? Have you seen the winters?' and we tell them, 'You know, the West is on fire,'" Matheus told BI in October 2022.

My Florida mortgage went up $1,000 after my home was put in a flood zone. I'd leave the state if my wife's business wasn't here.

Florida resident Danny Collins found a surprise in his mailbox when his mortgage, which is tied to his insurance payments, shot up $1,000 per month because of newly redrawn flood maps.

He was able to negotiate it down to just a $750 increase, but said the increase still makes him worried about his future, even having grown up accustomed to Florida's hurricane-prone weather.

"I've lived in Florida my entire life. I don't have a fear of hurricanes, it's just been so normalized. But now you start seeing how that impacts what we're paying here," Collins told BI in July.

We left Florida and moved to Wisconsin because our homeowners insurance jumped to $12,000

John and Natalia decided to leave Florida after emptying their savings accounts for a new roof and and their homeowners-insurance premium skyrocketed. They were finally convinced a future in Florida was too expensive.

They settled on Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, where their kids have explored a new-to-them forested environment and the family is excited to experience a White Christmas.

That doesn't mean leaving Florida was easy.

"I was really hesitant on moving — that's my stomping grounds. That's where I grew up. I wanted to die there," Natalia told BI in September.

Expensive flood insurance and the rising cost to rebuild is making the New Jersey shore a 'playground for the wealthy'

Barbara D. spent $160,000 out of pocket, including drawing from her retirement savings and amassing credit card debt, to fix her two properties in Highlands, New Jersey, after Hurricane Sandy. Her only option to get out of debt was to sell off her beloved 600-square-foot old clamdigger's shack for $277,000.

Meanwhile, expensive developments are going up in place of the old homes that luxury buyers treat as tear-downs, changing the character and population of the New Jersey shore.

"After Sandy, there was a lot more money coming in," homebuilder Shawn Mery told BI in November 2022.

The shock of destructive storms force some to flee Florida

Hundreds of residents have left the Florida Keys after the twin blows of destructive hurricanes and a new FEMA rule that prohibits improvements to homes that would cost more than 50% of their market value.

"I think people are really struggling, and it's just below the surface," Keys resident Debra Maconaughey told BI in February. "We're a tourist area, so it's in our best interests to make it look nice from the highway, but there's hidden pain."