Amidst the unknowns of a career change and a worldwide pandemic, Garret Cayman had finally wrangled the lifestyle he was always chasing.
He and his partner packed up their Phoenix apartment and moved to Nashville for three months – a city the had visited for no more than a long weekend. By the Fall, they had settled on Wadmalaw outside of Charleston, to be closer to family. By May 2021, they were packing again — this time to Virginia.
“We just want to explore areas that we’ve been interested in – with the potential of putting down roots one day…” Garret explains. “We’ve also had the chance to finally reconnect with extended family we haven’t seen in years. And do it at a pace that makes sense.”
“With working from home becoming the norm, I said to myself, ‘Hey, why not give it [exploring new areas for an extended amount of time] a try?’”
In the pre-2020 era, “traveling” for Garret was synonymous with “vacation”. But once the confines of a physical office were no longer a factor and he simply needed a wifi connection to do his job, Garret was faced with the simple question: Where do I want “home” to be?
Pre COVID-19 pandemic, nearly 5 million Americans lived as “digital nomads”. These location-independent workers relied on tech to get their jobs done remotely. From 2019 to 2020, that number saw a 49% increase, with the trend becoming more accessible for those outside of the typical freelance-friendly fields of tech and media. But as more companies announce office reopening plans (or lack thereof), many workers are asking themselves why they should go back to their pre-pandemic routines at all. And, if they don’t go back to their old way of doing things, what else needs to change?
At MOBLHOM, we’re seeing a permanent mindset shift around living. More than ever, flexibility and freedom are now accessible. The confines of office walls and annual leases are falling away. Lifestyles are moving toward the convenience that we see in other areas of our lives – like transportation and ride sharing, getting a burrito delivered to your doorstep, buying a house online… All this consumer spending is done online. Not the case for renting a home (at least not historically).
It’s not surprising that many of MOBLHOM’s users like Garret are signing up to make their remote living situation more convenient.
Although we may very well see a return to offices, we’ve stretched what’s possible. It’s likely flexibility will remain a benefit employers will offer to retain talent or cast a lager net into the hiring pool. Because of this, hiring radiuses have expanded drastically. Companies once based in California or New York City now have “distributed” teams across the country, and they’ll seek out hiring employees in secondary markets, like Austin or Phoenix, in order to create a “pod” of workers in a new location.
With these changes, “digital nomads” have the ability to traverse boundaries more than ever. And the typical digital nomad does not look like surfer dude living out of his van with a mountains are calling and I must go sticker. Many are families that now have the ability to move and experience a place together (vs the typical two week crammed vacation). Having the flexibility of work means more people can move around and sustain connections and purpose – not just the frills of experience.
Ready to try on a new place for size? Check out MOBLHOM’s locations
