Roots of typical American Homes

 As I sat down to write my weekly blog, I looked out the same window I had looked out of as a child.  Perhaps my experience is relatively uncommon.  After college graduation I remained in Kansas and taught school for one year while my husband was in military training.  I joined him at his first base, and later we made another military move.  Our Civilian life continued to give us more opportunities to live in different states.  Our last move was back to Kansas to care for our elderly parents, and Kansas remains our home.  This blog is about the way Americans move in their lifetimes.

There is a term for states where people tend to stay.  They are called Sticky States.  In order from the highest number to the lowest, those states are Texas, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Wisconsin, South Carolina, Alabama, and Michigan.  The list of the least Sticky states are Wyoming, North Dakota, Alaska, South Dakota, Rhode Island, West Virginia, Vermont, Delaware, Kansas, and Hawaii.    

There are various reasons for why some states are Sticky and others are not.  A negative reason is that some states have higher state and local tax burdens.  In contrast, reasons to stay in some states are cheaper taxes, more pleasant weather conditions, and above average job growth.  However, it is also true that in general, 40% of adults live in the state where they were born.

A sunset may paint the evening sky.

In general, statistics show that people begin by renting, although today's pattern is showing that young people sometime remain with or move back in with parents. After that comes buying a home in which to raise children.  Once the children are gone people often down-size, sometimes because couples want to be free to travel.  A later consideration is moving again to take care of elderly parents and then becoming the elderly parents themselves. 

The average number of houses in which people live, according to another source, is also that they are likely to live in eleven to twelve homes.  That includes such things as moving in with parents as children, dormitory rooms while getting an education and or training, and rentals when people are just getting started.    

My husband and I definitely fit into the pattern of several moves during our lifetime.  From a very worn-out mobile home in college, to nice apartments, an apartment in New York City, once upper class, then a little neglected, and now upper class again (We lived there in the middle stage!), to several lovely homes of our own that we remolded only to sometimes leave about the time we finished the remodels, retiring back to the home where I was raised. I assume there may be at least one other move.      

What I know is that we have had a wonderful life. We miss leaving behind wonderful friends, but we have tried to stay in touch.  We sometimes miss the years of our lives in cities, but as I sit here looking out my window a butterfly headed south delighted me. A sunset this evening may paint the sky only the way Kansas can.  

I hope that wherever you read this that you are happy, and that wherever your roots have been planted, they are just where you want them to be.