Housing

This City Will Pay You $15,000 to Move There

Douglas A. McIntyre

Published: July 27, 2021 8:30 am

According to MakeMyMove, more than 40 cities will pay people to relocate there. The payments run from a few thousand dollars to $20,000. All have hooks, and people considering a move need to read the fine print.

America has reached a period of relocation frenzy. Many people want to leave the largest cities on the east and west coasts for smaller cities inland. Many are less expensive. Some have better qualities of life, the definition of which changes from person to person and family to family. Whatever the reason, home values in places like Idaho have skyrocketed. Double-digit increases in home prices are not unusual for these destinations when compared to 2020.

Not every city has a natural influx of people but still wants to get more residents, in some cases to improve tax bases and in others to offer local companies a bigger base of employees to draw from. Among the cities paying the most, Montpelier, Vermont, has offered approximately $15,000. According to MakeMyMove, that sum breaks down this way: “Remote workers receive up to $5,000 per year for up to two years. Applicants who move and become a full-time employee of a Vermont business are eligible for up to $7,500.”

People who decide not to take the deal after a few months have to return the money.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Montpelier has 7,372 residents, 92% of which are white. The median value of an owner-occupied home is $252,600. However, an influx of residents could increase that. The median household income is $65,078, just slightly below the national figure. The 7.5% poverty rate is well below the U.S. number.

Montpelier does claim it has one distinction. It is the smallest state capital in the United States.

Click here to read about America’s 50 best cities to live in.