West Virginia
West Virginia, Baltimore, Tulsa: 7 U.S. states, cities and towns that will pay you to move there
Whether you’re making a move to escape the high costs of a big city or just wanting a fresh start in a new place — why not get paid?
There are many states, cities and towns across the United States that offer financial incentives to move there. It’s something that Evan Hock, co-founder and COO of MakeMyMove tells CNBC Make It, he wishes more people were aware of.
“For the first time, consumers are in the driver’s seat of where they live and work. They are more mobile than ever, both through remote work, and if you’re a smart person, you can pretty much get a job anywhere, and that gives people options,” he says.
“They are moving from places like California, New York, Texas and Florida to places that maybe have a better quality of life. As far as they’re concerned, they’re looking for affordability and community connection.”
The goals of most of these programs, Hock says, is to reach an audience of move-ready talent and grow their communities.
“The places that most commonly participate are places in the middle of the country. Lots of times, it’s places that have historically struggled to grow, or they’ve lost talent to city centers. This is a way that they can sort of open their doors and bring some of that talent back.”
Before applying to any of these programs, one of the most important things to do is visit. Hock says it’s something he finds that many people neglect. But once that’s done, go for it.
“The seats are limited, so if you’re thinking about making a move, it’s free to apply and applying kind of gets your name in the hat, so take the plunge,” he adds.
As of June 2025, the following cities and states are offering a financial incentive, with some paying as much as $12,000.
West Virginia
Ali Majdfar | Moment | Getty Images
1. West Virginia
Program name: Ascend West Virginia
Incentive: Up to $12,000 or more
How it works: In addition to money, West Virginia is offering prospective residents a slew of other incentives, including a free outdoor recreation package and a co-working space. To take advantage, you must live in the state for at least two years in one of the designated communities: New River George, Greenbrier Valley, Morgantown, Eastern Panhandle, and Greater Elkins.
To be eligible for the Ascend West Virginia program, applicants must work remotely, have the ability to work remotely in a business based outside of West Virginia or be self-employed outside of the state. You must provide proof of employment and income prior to being accepted into the program, have the ability to relocate within six months, be 18 years or older, and be a U.S. citizen or green card holder.
2. Tulsa, Oklahoma
Program name: Tulsa Remote
Incentive: $10,000 in rental grants or a lump sum after the purchase of a qualifying home and a three-year membership to a local co-working space.
How it works: Tulsa launched its program in 2018. In order to take advantage of the program, you must meet these requirements: be at least 18 years of age, authorized to work in the United States, have current full-time, remote employment outside of Oklahoma, can relocate to Tulsa within 12 months of approval. Applicants must also have lived outside of the state for one full year before applying.
The application process includes a 30-minute virtual interview and if you are selected to proceed, you’ll be required to complete a background check and income verification before continuing. Once you’re approved, Tulsa Remote will have to verify you’ve signed a qualifying lease or purchased a qualifying home. Approved applicants will then attend a new member orientation. Once those steps are completed, you will be eligible to receive the grant money.
3. Topeka, Kansas
Program name: Choose Topeka
Incentive: Up to $10,000 to be allocated to rent for the first year or up to $15,000 to put towards buying a home.
How it works: To receive the incentive, your employer must participate in the GO Topeka employee transfer program and contribute anywhere from $2,500 up to $15,000. After the first year, the program will reimburse part of the total qualified relocation incentive.
The city has two other programs that offer $5,000 to former Topeka residents and $5,000 to those transitioning out of the military. For these programs, the funds can be used however the recipient chooses.
4. Baltimore, Maryland
Program name: Buying Into Baltimore
Incentive: $5,000 in down payment and closing cost assistance, 5-year forgivable loan
How it works: The program is awarded by lottery 12 business days after the Live Baltimore’s Trolley Tour event, which is held three times a year.
Homebuyers must attend and complete all requirements of the Trolley Tour event. After that event, applicants have 12 business days to make an offer on a home, have the offer accepted, obtain a contract of sale and submit the required paperwork to be eligible for the lottery drawing. 20 homebuyers will be selected to receive the funds.
For remote workers interested, it’s important to note that the property must also be used as a primary residence.
Baltimore, Maryland
Andrey Denisyuk | Moment | Getty Images
5. Hamilton, Ohio
Program name: Talent Attraction Program Scholarship
Incentive: Up to $15,000
How it works: From April 1, 2025 to July 1, 2025, the Hamilton Community Foundation is taking applications for what is known as a “reverse scholarship.” Recent graduates will receive assistance with student loan debt.
To be eligible, applicants must have graduated within the last seven years from a STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, or Mathematics) program. Additionally, you can’t currently reside in the designated areas of the city of Hamilton, but you must have plans to move there.
Those interested must demonstrate employment within Butler County or have a full-time remote position. The application states that preference will be given to “those with a desire to give back to the community and become engaged in activities.”
6. Ketchikan, Alaska
Program name: Choose Ketchikan
Incentive: Up to $2,000
How it works: Applicants must be at least 18 years old and fully employed. They must live outside Alaska while working remotely for a company that is also outside Alaska.
Once you become a resident of Alaska, the state will pay you after a year of living there from the Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend.
The program is also offering up to three months of free internet.
7. Newton, Iowa
Program name: The Newton Housing Initiative
Incentive: $10,000 cash
How it works: The city, located approximately 30 miles from Des Moines, is offering $10,000 in cash to individuals seeking to purchase homes valued at more than $240,000.
Rental properties are not eligible and homes under $240,000 shall be eligible for tax abatement. Part of the “Get to Know Newton Welcome Package” also includes getting gifts from local businesses and attending events.
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BEVERLY, W.Va (WDTV) – The West Virginia Celtic Festival took place Saturday at Camp Pioneer in Randolph County.
People from around the country came to celebrate their Scottish and Irish heritage at the fourth annual event.
The festival included Irish dancing, Highland games and live Celtic music. Participants set up tents around the park for the public. Artifacts from Celtic heritage and history were on display.
The event was expected to reach up to 5,000 attendants.
“Today we’re hosting the fourth annual West Virginia Wild and Wonderful Celtic Festival and Highland Games. It’s a celebration of Celtic culture and heritage and history,” said David Ferguson, a participant. “We have Highland Games, heavy athletics. We have the athletes throwing the cabers, throwing the heavy stones. A lot of fun athletics to watch. We have Highland dancers. We have musical entertainment. We have something for everybody. We have a lot of fun activities for the kids.”
A Kirkin’ o’ the Tartan service will take place Sunday at the Beverly Presbyterian Church.
Copyright 2026 WDTV. All rights reserved.
West Virginia
Notebook: MCWS as good as advertised; West Virginia no overnight success story – WV MetroNews
Ahead of a June 10th trip to Omaha, I’d only heard positive reviews of the Men’s College World Series and the city that hosts it.
After an eight-night stay in Nebraska’s biggest city, it’s easy to see why.
The event at Charles Schwab Field was well-run and organized starting with Thursday practice for each of the eight participants.
The ballpark, which opened in 2011, is a state of the art, clean venue with a wide variety of concession offerings and a spacious press box that easily accommodated media members while all eight teams played two games over the first four days.
Crowds were strong and made their presence felt, particularly over the first several days.
There are fan-friendly activities just outside the stadium and no shortage of restaurants and bars within walking distance to partake in pregame or postgame festivities.
Perhaps Troy coach Skylar Meade summed it up best after the Trojans were eliminated Tuesday with a 12-0 loss to West Virginia that marked their second setback to the Mountaineers over a 96-hour stretch.
“Every person who came here now knows what this place is,” Meade said. “It’s the most unique place in the world. It’s the best college sporting event bar none. No offense to the others. Rose Bowl is awesome. It ain’t this.”
— — — — —
This was the third straight year I was present for West Virginia’s last game of the season after being on hand for the 2024 Super Regional series at North Carolina and again last year at LSU on the same stage.
Taking in the atmosphere in 2025 at Alex Box Stadium, when the Mountaineers played in front of consecutive crowds of 12,000-plus, provided a look at college baseball I’d never experienced and a newfound appreciation of the sport.
The MCWS took it a step further and continued the ascension of a Mountaineer program that gained national notoriety while hosting the Morgantown Regional and a Super Regional series against Cal Poly.
Envisioning WVU playing on the premier stage in college baseball was unfathomable a decade ago and even highly unlikely as recently as five years back.
But let’s not forget this is a program with four consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances and one of only two (North Carolina the other) to reach the Super Regional round each of the last three years.
What transpired this season as the Mountaineers set a new single-season program mark with 47 victories is a culmination of a lot of hard work from a lot of people within the program and athletic department alike, but it cannot be considered an overnight success story.
While West Virginia was swept in best-of-three sets in Chapel Hill and Baton Rouge, it’s important to remember those were 36 and 44-win teams that won regionals outside of Morgantown — feats fans should appreciate even more after witnessing the postseason atmosphere at Kendrick Family Ballpark.
WVU hadn’t won in the Super Regional round prior to this season, but two years ago, it had a ninth-inning lead against the Tar Heels in Game 1 and lost Game 2 by one run. Last season, the Mountaineers were eliminated by the eventual national champion.
“There are financial realities of the sport, and people may have assumptions about specific programs or about West Virginia in general that may or may not be correct,” WVU coach Steve Sabins said. “We have a whole lot of people working really hard on a whole lot of different areas, whether that’s Gold & Blue Enterprises, whether that’s BioPrecision with us, whether that’s the School of Sports Science or Biomechanics and Performance Center, whether that’s third-party NIL, specific donors, West Virginia has all of that.
“And it’s competing at the highest levels in all these areas, and I think it would probably surprise a lot of folks of the amount of effort, work, attention to detail and financial resources that have been poured into our program.”
— — — — —
A tip of the cap to West Virginia senior outfielder Brock Wills.
The UNC Wilmington transfer was a mainstay in the Mountaineer lineup throughout the regular season and Big 12 Conference Tournament when he appeared in 50 of 53 games with 45 starts.
When the NCAA Tournament rolled around, Sabins opted to start fellow senior Ben Lumsden in place of Wills.
The decision proved difficult to debate as Lumsden came up with numerous hits in key spots and finished 12-for-37 with three home runs, two doubles, 13 RBI and 11 base-on-balls over 11 games.
Wills, meanwhile, came off the bench to play in three NCAA Tournament games, one of which was Wednesday’s 12-7 season-ending loss to North Carolina when he came on as a right fielder to start the fifth inning.
Wills had three plate appearances against the Tar Heels, the first of which was a well-struck, but tough-luck double play on a liner to second base with the bases loaded in the sixth. He followed it with a walk in the seventh and a single in the ninth.
“So awesome. That kid has been such an instrumental piece of this team,” Sabins said. “In high-level competition, things don’t always go your way. There’s only nine dudes that get to play, and so coaches have to make hard decisions, and that happens every single year. And some years it’s a bigger storyline and some years it’s not, and some guys play good and some guys don’t. And there’s always some mix of that.
“But when things don’t go your way, it’s very easy to cash out. And so when you see a kid that has been so team-oriented and then to get inserted into the biggest game of his career and perform, it just shows you everything that you need to know about character. Because if you cash out, you don’t roll into the highest competition in the world and have success.
“Whether he had success or not, I knew his character. I knew that he was still working, and I knew he was team-oriented, and I knew he was fighting like hell to be great for the Mountaineers, and that’s why he got his opportunity. That’s why it came back around to him.”
For the season, Wills hit .283 (47-for-166) with two home runs, six doubles, three triples and 23 RBI.
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