By Gay Cororaton, MIAMI REALTORS Chief Economist
New York, California, and Texas were the top origins of people who moved to Miami-Dade County in 2024, using driver license exchanges as an indicator, according to Miami Association of REALTORS® (MIAMI) analysis of Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles data. New residents must exchange their out-of-state license for a Florida driver’s license within 30 days after establishing residency to drive on Florida’s roads.
In 2024, there were 20,909 out-of-state driver license exchanges from new residents in Miami-Dade County. In Miami-Dade County, driver license exchanges were 3% lower from one year ago but were 17% higher compared to the pre-pandemic level in 2019.
The top five states of origin of out-of-state driver license exchanges of residents moving to Miami-Dade County were New York, California, Texas, New Jersey, and Illinois, with over 1,000 movers from each state.
Driver license exchanges from these states fell from one year ago except from Texas where driver license exchanges rose to their highest levels since 2016:New York (4,056; -10%), California (2,498; -5%), Texas (1,830; +14%), New Jersey (1,541; -8%), and Illinois (1,012; -10%).
However, driver license exchanges in 2024 were 17% higher compared to 2019 and were higher than pre-pandemic levels in the top five states of origin: New York (+27%), California (+49%), Texas (+21%), New Jersey (+18%), and Illinois (+27%).
Diver license exchanges peaked in 2021 helped by factors such as the option to work from home, the retirement of Baby Boomers who are attracted by the state’s zero income tax and favorable weather, and strong job growth that has outpaced the nation’s. Among 55 years old and over, only 38% are in the labor force (working or looking for work) compared to about 40% in 2019. Based on the most recent payroll employment data in 2024 Q2, non-farm employment rose 1.3% in Miami-Dade County compared to 0.6% nationally.
Driver license exchanges fell in Broward, Palm Beach and Martin from one year ago and compared to pre-pandemic level
Other Southeast Florida counties experienced double-digit declines in driver license exchanges in 2024 from 2023 compared to Miami-Dade County’s decline (-3%): Broward County (18,527; -16%), Palm Beach County (23,074; -13%), Martin County (2,618; -12%), and St. Lucie (6,508; -12%). While driver license exchanges were up from pre-pandemic levels in Miami-Dade County (+17%), out-of-state driver license exchanges in 2024 were lower than pre-pandemic levels in 2019 in Broward County (-8%), Palm Beach County (-3%), and Martin County (-15%). However, driver license exchanges were up from the level in 2019 in St. Lucie County (+7%) due to double-digit growths in migration from states like New York, California, Texas, and New Jersey.
Download the 2024 Q4 Southeast Florida Driver License Exchanges Report here.
