Where Everybody in Riverside, CA is Moving From

In many ways, Riverside, California is close to everywhere.

The beach, Disneyland, skiing and downtown Los Angeles are all within about an hour’s drive, depending on the traffic, of course. But you don’t have to leave Riverside to find something to do. The city is home to multiple performing arts centers, including the theater that first showed “Gone with the Wind” in the 1930s. You can also check out some of Ansel Adams’ photographs and negatives at the California Museum of Photography, which is affiliated with the University of California, Riverside.

Riverside’s location and local culture no doubt contribute to its appeal as a destination for new residents. In fact, the Riverside metro-area population went from 4,523,653 to 4,580,670 between July 2016 and July 2017, a 1.3 percent increase, according to the latest census data. During that time, the population of Riverside County went from 2,386,522 to 2,423,266, a 1.5 percent increase. Riverside County is also the country’s 10th most populous county. (The metro area includes Riverside, San Bernardino and Ontario, so it has a larger population than Riverside County does.)

Some of that growth came from births in the area, but a fair share has also resulted from people moving into Riverside from other places. Indeed, between 2011 and 2015, another census study found that 114,665 new residents arrived.

So where are all those people coming from?

The census data gives us a pretty good idea. About three quarters (76 percent, or 87,302 people) of domestic movers came from other places within California, while the rest (24 percent, or 27,363 people) came from out of state. The majority of in-state movers came from nearby counties.

Below are rankings for the top five counties of origin for movers to Riverside County:

Movers outside of California:

1. Clark County, NV (Las Vegas): 1,842 movers
2. Maricopa County, AZ (Phoenix): 1,743 movers
3. Harris County, TX (Houston): 662 movers
4. King County, WA (Seattle): 619 movers
5. Mohave County, AZ (Lake Havasu City): 444 movers

Movers from California:

1. Los Angeles County: 21,257 movers
2. San Bernardino County: 20,805 movers
3. Orange County: 16,471 movers
4. San Diego County: 15,943 movers
5. Kern County: 1,596 movers

Sources:

Riverside Convention & Visitors Bureau http://riversidecvb.com/

U.S. Census Bureau