It’s hard to believe that just five years ago, many of us were living through a worldwide lockdown, trying to make sense of new ways of working and living. Back then, I believed the pandemic would dramatically and permanently accelerate the move away from big cities in favor of smaller towns and the countryside – something often referred to as counterurbanisation. In hindsight, my predictions weren’t entirely off the mark, but I was definitely too optimistic about how quickly these changes would reshape our world.
Looking back, the forced work-from-home experiment did initially make it seem like a permanent shift was imminent. Many employees (and a number of employers) discovered that productivity could actually increase when people had greater flexibility. As a result, a growing number of workers started looking for homes in smaller towns, spurred on by dreams of extra space, lower costs, and a quieter lifestyle.
However, as we stand in January 2025, it’s clear that while working from home is much more commonplace than it was in 2019, many businesses have reverted to asking their staff to be back in the office – some even five days a week. Why is this happening? One major reason is simple: Employers don’t always trust employees to maintain productivity away from direct supervision. There’s also a legitimate need for in-person collaboration and spontaneous interaction that’s hard to replicate on a video call. So while remote work definitely hasn’t disappeared, it hasn’t become as dominant as many predicted.
It’s important to distinguish between a short-term reaction to a crisis and a deeper, more permanent societal shift. Counterurbanisation certainly existed before COVID-19, spurred by high city property prices, changing attitudes towards quality of life, and the digital tools that make remote work possible. And the pandemic did give this trend a notable boost. But as with many revolutions, change is happening gradually – and not necessarily in a straight line.
Let’s revisit some of the long-standing reasons that have made city life so attractive for many years:
- Career Security: A stable career path often means being in or near large cities to take advantage of more abundant employment opportunities.
- Dual-Income Families: In households where both adults earn a wage, living in a metropolis makes it far easier for both partners to find and keep suitable jobs.
- Services and Infrastructure: Cities offer better public transport, numerous shops, entertainment, and schools. The countryside and smaller towns, on the other hand, suffer from fewer amenities, and a decline in services, creating a vicious circle pushing people further into cities.
- Cheap and Global Food Supply: There is no pressing need to grow your own food or manage your own energy production when supermarkets and utilities make them so accessible.
- Financing Challenges: Rural properties are often viewed as riskier investments by banks, making it easier to get a mortgage for a small city flat than for a larger house in the countryside.
So what will change to trigger counterurbanisation? Several factors come together:
- Skyrocketing City Prices: Urban property prices in many countries have only climbed higher, pushing younger families to seek better value in less dense areas.
- Broadband Everywhere: Fast, reliable internet has become the norm across large parts of Europe and North America, making it easier to handle at least part of the workweek from home.
- Pandemic Lessons: COVID-19 showed that many jobs can, in fact, be done remotely. Even though some offices have pulled employees back, flexible or hybrid work has become standard in numerous fields.
Of course, this doesn’t mean we’re going to see towering office buildings abandoned overnight. But the demand for more space – garden, home offices, and a quieter environment – will keep counterurbanisation on people’s minds.
Let me share a personal example. Back in September 2019 – before “coronavirus” was even a household word – my family and I moved to a rural property on two-and-a-half acres of land, complete with geothermal heating. Although we’re only half an hour’s drive from Odense (Denmark’s third city), it was still considered very rural by Copenhagen standards. The property was significantly cheaper than a tiny Copenhagen apartment, yet it gave us room to breathe, a place for a home office, and a large garden. These features made the lockdown and subsequent waves of remote working much easier to handle.
Still, make no mistake: The big cities aren’t going to disappear overnight. They’re centers of culture, innovation, healthcare, and education. But they may evolve. As more people work from home or in hybrid roles, the relationship between home and the office could change drastically. We may yet see city office spaces reimagined or downsized in favor of shared work hubs – places to brainstorm, network, and hold key face-to-face meetings.
That said, if prices in the countryside continue to rise and urban properties start to look less appealing, there’s a risk that cities could experience some level of decline if local governments fail to invest in them. The worst-case scenario – empty streets and boarded-up shops – seems more likely in smaller, less vibrant cities than in global powerhouses like New York or London.
Besides, even though the initial pandemic surge of remote work didn’t lead to an instant mass exodus, there are other forces that could tip the balance in the coming years:
- Autonomous Vehicles: Widespread adoption of self-driving cars and delivery drones could reduce the inconvenience of living far from grocery stores, schools, and other amenities.
- Climate Change: Between extreme weather events and rising global temperatures, more people might be forced out of low-lying cities.
- Robotics in Farming: If robotic technology becomes cheap and effective, individuals could grow more of their own food without the usual labor-intensive chores. The appeal of having acreage for small-scale self-sufficiency might continue to rise.
Looking ahead, the ideal property might have the following qualities:
- Proximity to Employment: Whether in person or via a reliable travel corridor, living up to two or three hours away from work seems manageable for many hybrid workers. Connectivity: Fibre broadband (or fast mobile networks like 5G) is a non-negotiable for remote work.
- Safe from Rising Sea Levels: In an age of climate uncertainty, nobody wants to see their investment literally drown.
- Room to Expand or Cultivate: Acreage for gardens, future home offices, or small-scale farming is increasingly valuable.
- Attractiveness and Climate: A beautiful setting or a mild climate is more than just a bonus – it can significantly improve day-to-day life.
Yes, I was overly optimistic back in 2020, thinking the pandemic might trigger a lightning-fast revolution. But I still believe counterurbanisation is here to stay – just on a slower, more nuanced trajectory than I initially expected. Hybrid and remote work remain commonplace, if not universal, and people have realized how satisfying it can be to have more space and a better work-life balance.
Cities will continue to evolve, and some may struggle if they fail to adapt. Meanwhile, rural areas and smaller towns that invest in infrastructure, connectivity, and community amenities could see a welcome influx of new life. It won’t happen overnight. But the seeds have definitely been planted, and the steady shift in how – and where – we choose to live will likely be one of the lasting legacies of the pandemic era.