Cities & States That Will Pay You to Move There

Choosing a new place to live can be tricky. Whether you're a new college graduate, buying your first house, or just short on cash, affordability is crucial when considering a location.

Luckily, not everywhere in the United States is experiencing skyrocketing rent prices. Cities and states across the country are incentivizing incoming residents with everything from discounted rent and forgivable home loans to free college tuition.

Here are the amazing communities that will pay you to live there.

1. Vermont

Details: A new policy is designed to help fill the state’s open jobs by giving people an incentive to relocate. If you move to Vermont after January 1, 2020, the program will pay as much as $5,000 in some areas, like Burlington, that have larger populations, and as much as $7,500 in most other smaller towns. It’s a variation on another program, launched earlier this year, that reimburses remote workers up to $10,000 when they move to the state.

Number of Open Jobs: 12,806

Companies Hiring: Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital, Piedmont Airlines, HCRS, Marathon Health, State of Vermont, BioTek Instruments, Edward Jones & more.

2. New Haven, Connecticut

Details: The city’s Re:New Haven program is making New Haven look like your new home. The city offers up to $10,000 in interest-free loans to new homeowners in the area, along with $30,000 to make energy-saving upgrades. The deals don’t stop there: if you live in the house for a long enough period, the loans are 100% forgivable. New Haven also attracts new residents with families by promising to cover in-state college tuition for students who graduate from New Haven public schools.

Number of Open Jobs: 5,053

Companies Hiring: T-Mobile, Edward Jones, Great Clips, Intuit, Synagro & more.

3. Harmony, Minnesota

Details: Harmony, Minnesota lives up to its name with its residential home construction rebate. The city offers residents interested in building new homes up to $12,000 in cash rebates, depending on the estimated market value of the house, to encourage construction. And participants in the program won’t run into a bunch of red tape – there are no restrictions on age, income level or residency. Time to break out the blueprints for your dream home!

Number of Open Jobs: 665

Companies Hiring: Kwik Trip, American Consumer Panels, Cadence Design Systems, Platinum Supplemental Insurance, C.R. England & more.

4. Maine

Details: Are you still paying off your student loans? Decrease your debt while decreasing your taxes by moving to Maine. Through the Opportunity Maine Tax Credit, the state helps workers who are recent college graduates by subtracting the amount an individual pays in student loans from what they owe in state income tax. For example, if you owe $2,000 in state taxes, and pay off $1,800 in student loans, then you’ll only have $200 in taxes.  

Number of Open Jobs: 20,284

Companies Hiring: Apple, Great Schools Partnership, WTB Law, Shipt, Fastaff & more.

5. Tulsa, Oklahoma

Details: Calling all remote workers! Tulsa, Oklahoma is incentivizing employees to move to the city through the Tulsa Remote program. Participants can access furnished housing with discounted rent and free utilities for the first three months. When they’re on the clock, workers can take advantage of coworking spaces (snacks included!) as well as networking and workshop opportunities. We haven’t even gotten to the biggest perk: individuals who stay in the program for one year are eligible to receive a $10,000 cash stipend.

Number of Open Jobs: 13,101

Companies Hiring: CBRE, 360 Payments, ConsumerAffairs, Macy’s, Midfirst Bank, Massage Envy & more.

6. Curtis, Nebraska

Details: You’re probably planning in the future to buy a house. But what if you could be a homeowner and a landowner? Nebraska’s “Easter City” is offering free plots of land to newcomers where they can construct a single-family homes. And the land isn’t in the middle of nowhere – all plots are already located on paved streets with access to utilities.

Number of Open Jobs: 27

Companies Hiring: UPS, BSB Construction, Acosta, Crete Carrier Corporation, H&M Trucking & more.

7. St. Clair, Michigan

Details: You may have received scholarships from your hometown in order to go to college. But what if a city paid you to move back after graduation? St. Clair is attracting recent grads by providing up to $15,000 in student loan repayments to newcomers. The “come home” award is available for future residents with degrees in science, technology, engineering, arts or math. Talk about an unforgettable welcome home!

Number of Open Jobs: 3,103

Companies Hiring: L&W Supply, Morrison Healthcare, Kohl’s, Super Service, Triumph Group & more.

8. Baltimore, Maryland

Details: Baltimore is eliminating property abandonment by making it easier for you to become a homeowner. The city is encouraging buyers to invest in homesthat have been marked vacant for one year or more through the Vacants to Value Booster incentive. The program contributes $10,000 loans to the downpayment and closing costs of distressed and formerly distressed properties. The best part? The loans are forgivable over a five year period.

Number of Open Jobs: 78,323

Companies Hiring: Bank of America, Baltimore City Health Department, Medifast, VIPKID International, Target & more.

This article was originally published on Glassdoor, one of the world’s largest job and recruiting sites. Glassdoor combines all the jobs with valuable data to make it easy for people to find a job that fits their life, while also helping employers hire quality talent at scale. Are you hiring? Post jobs for free with a 7-day trial.