Back during the height of the Covid epidemic, almost all office workers and many others worked from home. It was a dramatic shift in the workspace that is still reverberating through the economic system. Today more people than ever before are remote workers who can do their jobs from anywhere. 

That change has also led to major shifts in transportation and real estate as people move away from city centers towards more affordable and calmer communities like Fresno.

How Big is This Transition to Remote Work?

The numbers are almost unbelievable compared to just a handful of years ago. According to Payscale.com, about 80% of workers are remote or hybrid! Which means tons of people in the United States and around the world have a flexibility they've never before enjoyed.

Though CEOS and major corporations have tried to call workers back into the office now that Covid is less of a concern, this return to corporate life isn't being well received. For instance, a UK-focused report by LinkedIn found that a third of workers would leave their jobs if offices enforced a return-to-work policy. 

A University of Pittsburgh study also found that 99% of companies enforcing a return-to-work policy saw significant declines in employee satisfaction.

Untethering From the Workplace & Moving House

The major transition to remote work during the pandemic also gave workers the ability to move away from densely populated cities. Many were concerned about potentially being caught in a bad outbreak of Covid or catching Covid in these places. A Zillow survey found that 1 in 10 Americans moved during the pandemic.

Even more, moving out of the city or towards lower cost of living areas allowed workers to enjoy a better quality of life. Their incomes could go further in these areas, allowing for the purchase of homes or even just upgrading to larger, better furnished apartments.

It's been about four years since COVID first appeared and workers that first moved in 2020 are well-settled into their homes. Though the long-distance moving process is a time-consuming expense, many are still choosing to live outside the cities where their jobs are located.

Impact of Remote Work on Real Estate

So what has all of this moving around done for the real estate market? While workers have more flexibility, the great transition to more affordable areas has led to an overall increase in the cost of housing. Bankrate stated that an FRBSF study found an increase in the cost of homes as well as rentals. 

It's widely recognized that the cost of housing is going up due to inflation, but some of that cost also appears to result from remote workers leaving metropolitan areas like Los Angeles and New York City. The Penn Institute for UR reported that 19.6% of office spaces were vacant since Covid and peak office occupancy is just 50% of pre-pandemic levels.

However, this has also led to positive changes in the areas where they move too. For instance, Bankrate also reported that remote workers had an average of 25% more to spend on housing compared to local workers. 

Find Out About a Free Moving Estimate in Fresno with Courtesy Moving & Storage

If you are a remote worker looking to relocate to a more affordable, less populated community, Courtesy Moving & Storage can help make it happen. We're an established residential mover in Fresno with BBB-accreditation and an A+ rating. Our team can provide:

  • Commercial Moving Services
  • Local Moving Services
  • Residential Moving Services
  • Specialized Moving Services
  • Storage Solutions

Give us a call to set up your free moving estimate in the Fresno area today.