If you were to ask anyone from outside of the US where they would like to live if they were to move to the US, we’re confident that most people would say either New York or Los Angeles. However, most Americans would disagree with you.
One of the latest trends in the United States is moving out of California. Now, you may think “trend” is a harsh word, but in reality, it has been reported that over half of the residents of California are looking for a way out of the state, and almost a million of them have moved out in the past year alone.
So, if you are thinking about moving from California, it is better to make it easier for yourself and move with professional movers, check this article for more details. By trusting state to state movers, you will get rid of the risks associated with this stressful task, especially if you are moving out of state.
Now, that should come as no surprise. There are many, many things wrong with the Golden State. On that note, here are the main reasons why people are moving out of California. In addition to this, you can check companies such as ThisOldHouse if you need help with the moving.
1. It’s Too Expensive
Despite often being portrayed as the place where dreams come to life, California is actually a lot closer to a place where dreams come to die. Many have moved to Cali only to lose all of their life savings just because this state is so expensive. Take the rent, for example. On average, California has the highest average rent in the US – if you exclude Hawaii.
On average, you have to spend upwards of $1500 on rent each month if you just want to have a roof over your head. And if we’re being honest, for $1500 – you’re not getting a lot. On top of that, everything else is expensive. If you make less than $3000 a month, you can forget about ever visiting a restaurant or going out for drinks with your friends.
But, money is not the only issue. Recently, even the world’s on-and-off wealthiest man, Elon Musk, has moved from California with no intention of ever coming back, so there’s undoubtedly more to it than just the high cost of living.
2. State Taxes
If you were to take a wild guess, tell us, which state do you think has the highest marginal income tax rate in the entire US? Yup, you’ve guessed it – it’s California. At the moment, the marginal income tax rate is a staggering 13.3% in California, leading second-placed Hawaii by almost 2.5%. The worst part is, the legislators are pushing to increase the state taxes up to 17%, which would put it 300% over the US average.
To top things off, residents of the Golden State are not even allowed to deduct most of their state taxes from their federal taxes, thanks to the act brought forth by former president Trump. Now, since for most people, these are just numbers, and most people outside of the US aren’t aware of the tax brackets – let us put it into perspective for you. If you were to make $50,000 a year, you’d have to pay around $10,000 in state and federal taxes. However, if you make $500,000 a year – you’d be paying a staggering $210,000 and some change in both state and federal taxes.
Quite bleak, isn’t it?
3. Unemployment
Many people have lost their jobs amidst the global health crisis, but some places generally have it worse than others. California, for quite some time now, has been one of the places where it is the hardest to keep the job. It is also one of the places where you could earn the most money, but those things usually go hand in hand.
As of today, California ranks top five in both categories. They’re ranked number 5 in the average household income, trailing only behind New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Maryland. On the other hand, with an unemployment rate of 7.7% – they’re dead-last in the entire US.
That is what scares most people, and that’s why they’re moving away. If nothing else, at least long-distance movers like GpsMoving don’t have to worry about their jobs.
4. Homeless People
California also leads the entire United States in a number of homeless people roaming the streets. As of 2024, California has over 150,000 homeless people. Once again, to put that into perspective, it is estimated that there are just above 550,000 homeless people in America. That means that nearly 30% of them live in California, with most of them being in Los Angeles and San Francisco.
The sad reality is, a significant number of them is either mentally ill and/or addicted to drugs and alcohol. Those things almost inevitably lead to more significant social problems. Most of them are indecent in public areas in more ways than one. Also, attacks and muggings have also been happening. To make matters worse, all of this is happening amidst a global pandemic.
Now, the problem isn’t with the homeless people themselves. It’s with the politicians and the state higher-ups who either don’t want or don’t know how to deal with this problem. This leads us to our next point…
5. Politics
California has always been a democratic and liberal state, but nowadays, most Cali residents are agreeing that the state is probably taking a wrong turn. It is simply leaning too far to the left, which inevitably leads to problems, both economic and societal.
Many have voiced their displeasure with the way this state is run. They’ve gone after the politicians and their incompetence and so on. To be fair, the political problems within the Golden State are way too complex, and their roots are far too deep for us to even try and paint you a picture, but that only shows how much people hate it there and how much they want to move out.
6. Working From Home
If there is one thing we have all learned in the past year and a half, that’s that we can work from home. Most of the modern-day jobs can be done remotely, sitting in your bedroom, in your underwear, drinking a cold beer, and watching a game in the background.
Well, most California residents have realized that, too. Now that they know that they can do it from the comfort of their home – why would they want to live in a state that’s constantly decimated by the wildfires and is also charging you over $1500 a month just to live there? So, why not just move someplace cheaper and more pleasant and just keep working from home?
Conclusion
As you might’ve guessed, we’ve only scratched the surface with these six reasons – there’s plenty more where that came from. Where’s all of this leading? We don’t know. What we do know, however, is that most people moving out of California are experiencing the joys of Texas for the first time at this very exact moment.
