CEDSSummary Background People & Communities
Residential Mobility
Read the share of residents who changed address, then see why mobility and population growth are different measures.
- Address Changes
- Housing Choice
- Settling & Staying
County Data Explorer
Where Residents Are Moving
One Region
Choose a measure, then select a county on the map or in the comparison below.
Compare the Five Counties
Sources and Map Notes
County boundaries are from the U.S. Census Bureau, January 1, 2024. This is a county comparison, not a map of neighborhoods, parcels, tribal jurisdiction, or hazard zones. County totals include residents of the Mescalero Apache Tribe within those boundaries.
U.S. Census Bureau: About County Boundaries ↗Compare Address Changes Across Places
The interactive chart asks one clear question: what share of residents age one and older lived at a different address one year before their survey response? Choose “Different Address One Year Ago” to compare the move rate, or “Same Address One Year Ago” to see the complementary share. Each bar is a percentage of that place's current residents age one and older, not a count of people who crossed a county line.
Five county rows are followed by New Mexico and United States comparison rows. Eddy has the highest reported county move share at 15.3%; Lincoln has the lowest at 11.7%. New Mexico's rate is 11.9% and the U.S. rate is 12.3%. Those wider figures offer context rather than a target. Small differences need to be read with ACS sampling uncertainty, and this single five-year estimate does not establish a rising or falling trend.
Current Residents Age 1+
The denominator is people age one and older living in the named place when surveyed.
Any Different Address
A person may have moved nearby or from farther away. The chart does not separate those routes.
Five-Year Estimate, One-Year Question
Responses were collected from 2020 to 2024; each person was asked about their home one year earlier.
Lincoln County
Reported residents age one and older at a different address one year earlier.
Eddy County
The same measure, 3.6 percentage points above Lincoln's reported share.
Use Highest First or Lowest First to reorder the rows for the selected measure. The bars all begin at zero and keep the exact percentages beside them. Open the table below the chart to see both “different” and “same” address shares together. The two shares within a place add to about 100%, subject to rounding.
Compare the Evidence
How Often Residents Change Address
Choose a measure and comparison order to explore the values. Bars start at zero; values remain visible beside every bar.
Different Address One Year Ago · A consistent zero-based scale makes the differences visible.
U.S. Census Bureau · 2020–2024 ACS 5-Year Estimates, table B07003. Universe: residents age 1 and older at their current residence. “Different Address” includes local moves and moves from elsewhere; it is not net migration. Survey estimates have sampling uncertainty. Percentages are rounded. View Source Definitions ↗
View All Values in a Table
| Area / Organization | Different Address One Year Ago | Same Address One Year Ago |
|---|---|---|
| Eddy | 15.3% | 84.7% |
| Chaves | 13.2% | 86.8% |
| Lea | 13% | 87% |
| Otero | 12.8% | 87.2% |
| United States | 12.3% | 87.7% |
| New Mexico | 11.9% | 88.1% |
| Lincoln | 11.7% | 88.3% |
Key Insights
These are planning questions raised by the mobility measure—not conclusions about why residents moved.
Offer Housing for Different Transitions
Address changes occur in every county. Test whether rental, ownership, accessible, and short-term options fit residents' needs, using current local housing evidence rather than the move rate alone.
Make Local Services Easier to Find
People who move within a county and people arriving from elsewhere may both need clear routes to schools, utilities, healthcare, transportation, and community information.
Connect Moves With Workforce Evidence
The chart does not say how many moves were job-related. Ask employers and residents whether housing availability, job changes, or commute needs create barriers to staying.
Keep Mobility Distinct From Growth
A change of address is not a net population gain. Read this snapshot beside population counts and migration measures before describing a county as growing, shrinking, or attracting newcomers.