More City Dwellers Crave Backyard Space

Crowded restaurants, cultural events, public transit, bars, dense social gatherings—the things that draw some people to city living may now be driving them into the suburbs and into rural areas to escape the impact of the pandemic, according to The New York Times.

In New York City alone, five percent of the population or 420,000 people left the city between March 1 and May 1. This data was collected by Descartes Labs, which used anonymized smartphone location data to track New York City residents.

After sheltering outside of cities with parents or living in second homes or in long-term Airbnb facilities, many people seem to be making a permanent move to the cul-de-sac with backyard and, yes, swimming pool.

Where are they moving to? To the turf of many of NESPA’s members:  According to Descartes Labs, New Yorkers went east to Long Island’s Nassau and Suffolk Counties, west to Monroe County in Pennsylvania, south to Monmouth County in New Jersey, north to Westchester County, northeast to Fairfield County in Connecticut and farther afield in all directions including Palm Beach County in South Florida.