A recent polling of California residents show that 53% of it’s residents would like to move out of the state. The high cost of living, caused by high tax rates and undue regulation makes it hard even for higher paid workers to get ahead.
California, New York and Illinois are bleeding population as the blue states make living too hard for it’s residents.
The “Trust Barometer” poll, by Edelman Intelligence, was conducted from January 4th through the 20th and included 1,500 California, with a separate poll of 400 tech workers. Nearly 62% of residents say California’s best days are behind it and that indicates they believe it’s all downhill from here.
Nearly three-fourths of residents, 72%, say “cost and availability of housing is a very serious issue for California” — rising to 76% in the Bay Area.
And 62% of residents say “homelessness is a very serious issue for California. The proportion in the Bay Area is the same.
SFGate.com notes: “It appears the housing and homelessness crises have led to a pessimistic outlook.”
It adds (original links):
The trend is backed up by much of SFGATE’s past reporting. We’ve spoken with people who’ve left California for the Pacific Northwest, Texas and Denver — all popular destinations for Bay Area ex-pats. Nearly everyone we talked to cites the high cost of living as the primary reason they left. Others were looking for a slower pace of life, lower taxes, less traffic and more time with family.
There have been other signs of the California exodus. In December, it was revealed that one of the most frequently Googled questions in California last year was “Should I move out?”