A record number of homebuyers are looking to relocate to a different city. The most common destinations will shock no one — except maybe California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
New data from Redfin, a real estate brokerage company, suggest Newsom’s constituents are continuing to exit their state in record numbers, despite the governor’s pleas for Florida residents to reject DeSantis’s “anti-freedom” policies. San Francisco and Los Angeles remain the top two cities homebuyers are looking to leave, while the top two destinations are Miami and Tampa. Homebuyers seem to view the ability to pay their electric bill in Florida as a worthwhile trade-off for losing the freedom to teach kindergartners about gender.
Across the country, prospective homebuyers are fleeing expensive Democrat-run cities in favor of more affordable conservative areas. In the second quarter of 2022, 32.6% of Redfin users were searching for properties in a different metro area, compared to 25.2% at the same time in 2019. Rising home prices and mortgage rates are simply pricing many out of the market. At $863,390, California’s median home price is nearly double the national average of $416,000.
“The typical home in San Francisco or San Jose now costs more than $1.5 million. Add in today’s 5%-plus mortgage rates and you have a sky-high monthly payment,” said Redfin Deputy Chief Economist Taylor Marr.
Rounding out the 10 most frequently abandoned cities are New York City, Washington, D.C., Seattle, Boston, Detroit, Denver, Chicago, and Minneapolis — all areas run by Democratic mayors. Residents there enjoy not only exorbitant living costs but also amenities such as high crime rates, homelessness, and excessive taxes. The cost of living in San Francisco, for example, is 91% higher than the national average. Statewide, California residents pay 29% more than the national average on utilities, 12% more for food, and 37% more on transportation.
One immigrant who came to Los Angeles from Peru told the Los Angeles Times that the increasing homeless population was a big factor in his decision to leave the state.
“It was starting to remind me of where I left many years before,” he said.
Along with Miami and Tampa, frequent destinations for homebuyers who leave their cities are Phoenix, Arizona; Sacramento, California; Las Vegas, Nevada; Cape Coral, Florida; San Diego, California; North Port, Florida; San Antonio, Texas; and Dallas, Texas. Florida and Texas cities dominate the list.
Redfin’s analysis notes that remote work is enabling people who want to leave. No longer tied down by physically needing to show up to work, people are moving to cheaper cities and retaining their jobs.
Numbers released by Redfin during quarter one of this year reflect a similar pattern. They also reflect hard data of those who have already left. In 2021 alone, over 360,000 California residents moved out of state. These cities can’t afford to lose any more residents, though they undoubtedly will if nothing changes.
Katelynn Richardson is a Summer 2022 Washington Examiner fellow.
