So When you Cali Folks Leaving?

[bluemustang]

Many Heading To Arizona, Nevada, Texas, Washington

POSTED: 5:55 am PST December 11, 2006

SAN FRANCISCO -- For the first time in a decade, the number of residents who left California for another state in 2005 exceeded newcomers who moved here, according to the newest figures from the state Department of Finance.

California recorded a domestic net loss of about 29,000 people last year -- the first negative flow of residents since the mid-1990s. The biggest recent loss was in 1994, when the sputtering state economy helped California lose about 350,000 residents to the other 49 states.

The most common destinations for the newest crop of departing Californians were Arizona, Nevada, Texas, Washington and Oregon.

Anecdotal evidence suggests the high cost of housing was the primary reason people fled the nation's most populous state, which has more than 37 million residents.

The number of Californians who could comfortably pay the mortgage on an entry-level home fell to 24 percent in the third quarter -- down from 44 percent in 2003, according to the California Association of Realtors. The statewide median home price in the third quarter was $563,190.

Stephen Gallant moved to Michigan this summer after nearly three years in the posh Silicon Valley suburb of Los Gatos, trading a $2 million house for one in a Detroit suburb that was about half the cost and double the size.

"It was all about lifestyle," said Gallant, former chief financial officer for Global Motorsport Group Inc.

"If I'm going to spend $1 million on a house as opposed to $2 million, that opens up a lot of purchasing power, the ability to go out and do other things," he said.

In previous decades, waves of departing Californians were primarily white. But the newest exodus includes unprecedented numbers of Hispanics, primarily Mexican-Americans.

The analysis by Hans Johnson, a demographer with the Public Policy Institute of California, found that about 320,000 more Hispanics left California than arrived from other states between 2000 and 2005.

Asians were the only ethnic group to have more people move into California than leave, according to Johnson.

The state gained nearly 33,000 Asians from elsewhere in the United States from 2000 to 2005 while losing 441,000 whites and 67,000 African-Americans.

In the past five years, the overall state population grew by 2.9 million people, including 1.2 million foreign immigrants, according to the California Department of Finance

[Thomas91169]

Its a little different from what i read earlier in our local paper, but ours basically said the same thing, but had more emphasis on the hispanic populations being the vast majority of those leaving.

Id leave if things ever go sour here at my work. We have a sister company in Florida id love to get transferred to. Arrive and take a sawzall to the exhaust and rip out the smog equipment and send them to the gubernator of commiefornia.

[Seph]

I would leave as well if I could find a sweet job outside of California.

Seriously, if I can buy a crappy house here for like $500,000 but somewhere else it's like a fuckin mansion, what would you go with?

Oh and all the wonderful emission laws and bullshit that we have to put up here.. it's magical.

[Stumpy]

my brother lives in hawthorne. his house that he rents is a grand a month and about 1000 sq ft. my apt in katy/houston is 939/month and is 1256 sq ft. his house isn't bad looking, but damn is it small. a small house here is about 1400 sq ft and runs about 85000 to buy. i never knew it would cost so much to live in a state that is going to fall into the ocean in a few years. crazy shit.

[Thomas91169]

yeah but you gotta remember, people in regions where decent homes are 3-400k are probably making 60-100k a year. While a cheaper house sounds nifty, you prolly make less in that region. its all relative.

we bought our home new in 1989 for 95k. it was 1400 sf then and its now around 2000sf and before the addition it appraised at 350k. It will likely be a bit under 420k.

the only cool thing about the prices is you can do what one of our salesman did. Bought his house new in 1980, sold it 2 years ago for 700k, moved to colorado and basically bought a mansion and tons of land, a vette and a escalade, a boat and a bunch of ATV's, and is living off the fat o' the land.

[Seph]

Thomas, that's the way to do it. Get a whatever house, live in there for a bit and wait for the market to go up. When it does, sell it, and go buy a better and bigger house else where with goodies for the extra cash.

[Rollinthundr]

Only problem is, you'd better be sure you want to leave. Because, if you decide you hate it where you go, you ain't commin' back (you won't be able to afford a house).

I wish I was one of those 29,000. Some day

[Zim]

Man back in 1990-1991 my parents bought their house in Iowa for like 215,000 dollars. It was "their" house... they hired the builder, did all the designing, etc. They still have it today and when they bought it it was about 4000 sq ft, now the basement is finished with an extra large room off the backside of the house and a brand new addition to our deck allowing room for the hot tub. Its completely paid off now (when my grandpa died, he paid the mortgage of all his kids houses off) and I have no idea what its worth. Last I knew, my dad was complaining because it was worth around 600,000 and he didnt like all the damn taxes that go with that.

Im definitely not leaving the midwest unless I land a job in Denver or somewhere out west in the rocky mountain region.

[n8r]

Quote: Originally Posted by Zim Man back in 1990-1991 my parents bought their house in Iowa for like 215,000 dollars. It was "their" house... they hired the builder, did all the designing, etc. They still have it today and when they bought it it was about 4000 sq ft, now the basement is finished with an extra large room off the backside of the house and a brand new addition to our deck allowing room for the hot tub. Its completely paid off now (when my grandpa died, he paid the mortgage of all his kids houses off) and I have no idea what its worth. Last I knew, my dad was complaining because it was worth around 600,000 and he didnt like all the damn taxes that go with that. Im definitely not leaving the midwest unless I land a job in Denver or somewhere out west in the rocky mountain region.

Or move to the South East, which is the best eva!!

[Zim]

I like 4 seasons....

[n8r]

Quote: Originally Posted by Zim I like 4 seasons....

we have em. Summer, College Football, Febuary, and Almost Summer

[Zim]

Quote: Originally Posted by n8r we have em. Summer, College Football, Febuary, and Almost Summer