Chicagoans are moving to a certain Florida city like nowhere else – NBC Chicago

It’s no secret that people living in the Chicago area, and the Midwest in general, sometimes realize they’ve had enough of the cold and head to warmer climes for the winter or forever.

While there are plenty of hot options from California to Arizona and Florida and beyond, many Chicagoans have their sights set on one particular city in Southwest Florida.

According to a study redfin real estate website, residents of the Chicago metropolitan area flock to Cape Coral, Florida like nowhere else. Located about 10 miles southwest of Fort Myers, Cape Coral is a city of about 200,000 that has more than 400 miles of canals and is located on the Gulf Coast.

According to its website, the city is “a vibrant, friendly community with all the charm you’d expect in Southwest Florida.” It’s unclear why more Chicagoans flock to Cape Coral than anywhere else.

Meanwhile, Chicago was included on Redfin’s list of top metro areas for homebuyers to move to, ranking fifth ahead of San Francisco, New York City, Los Angeles and Washington DC.

While some leave Chicago, the city ranks high with other areas. Chicago was an ideal destination for people looking to leave the Denver metropolitan area and a major out-of-state destination for locals moving from the Detroit area.

Redfin’s analysis was conducted between April and June 2023, surveying two million users who viewed homes for sale online in more than 100 metropolitan areas. To measure the proportion of homebuyers who want to move from metro to metro in an area, the researchers calculated the total area. Immigrant home seekers, according to the website.