By far the most frequently mentioned as the main reason for moving in were career changes, followed by training/further education. Both have gained in relevance. Political reasons (political climate, taxes) were practically never reasons for joining or leaving.

Among the six main reasons for leaving, housing reasons and family reasons are practically the most important, followed by career changes. The first two reasons have increased in importance compared to 2009.

Among the 20 detailed reasons for moving in mentioned as important, the statement that they deliberately wanted to move to the city is clearly at the top. Around half of the respondents cited a job change or training and further education and almost as many cited the living environment or shorter commutes as reasons. These are the reasons that you have found a nice rental apartment in the city or the proximity to cultural institutions. The latter two reasons have become less important than previous surveys. The search for people moving from abroad, foreigners and people moving into shared flats was particularly difficult.

Among the 19 detailed reasons given as important, reasons around the housing supply in the city were mentioned the most, with more people moving away than in previous surveys giving these reasons.

The survey was designed and evaluated by Stadtentwicklung Zürich. It was realized in cooperation with the Population Office of the City of Zurich.