Main Reason For Leaving KC

If residents anticipated leaving the Kansas City area, the reason most often selected was personal reasons relating to family, chosen by 24 percent of respondents, which was very similar to last year’s results. However, moving for a job jumped up in the rankings to from fourth to second place, perhaps reflecting growing national competition for workers in a tight labor market.  At 18 percent, the change in residents who see themselves moving for a new job is just shy of being a statistically significant difference from the 13 percent who selected this reason in 2018. Looking for a better life/opportunity and weather/change of scenery were chosen next most often, by 14 percent and 13 percent of respondents, respectively. These percentages vary substantially by age and race, however, with young adults more likely to move for a job, older adults and middle-income households much more likely to cite personal reasons/family than younger people, and blacks much more likely to cite looking for a better life than whites or Latinos, Asians and other minorities.

(Caution: The sample for this question is limited to only those who said they intend to leave the Kansas City area. Where there are fewer than 20 responses, the tabulations may become unreliable.)