The trend of Californians looking to leave the Golden State in hopes of finding more affordable housing options elsewhere seems to be alive and well, according to a recent study from Redfin.
The online realtor website found that a record number of users are looking to other states in hopes of finding affordable home prices. From April to June 2023, about 25.5% of Redfin’s two million users, or 510,000, have looked into relocating.
The report was based on an analysis of about two million Redfin users looking for homes for sale in more than 100 metros areas from April to June.
Unsurprisingly, prospective home buyers in San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York are looking to leave those metro areas more than any other place in the country, most likely due to the high housing costs.
In San Francisco, the median sale price of a home is $1.4 million; in Los Angeles, it’s $975,000 and in New York, homes typically sell for $800,000.
But where are people looking to move to? Researchers at Redfin found that Las Vegas, Phoenix, Tampa and Orlando were the top four places people were interested in moving to.
Researchers also found that Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, San Diego and Chicago residents are looking to relocate to Sin City the most.
Top 10 Metros Homebuyers Are Moving Into
- Las Vegas, Nevada
- Phoenix, Arizona
- Tampa, Florida
- Orlando, Florida
- Sacramento, California
- North Port, Sarasota, Florida
- Cape Coral, Florida
- Dallas, Texas
- Miami, Florida
- Houston, Texas
Besides California, residents in Washington D.C. and Boston are among the top 10 metro areas people are leaving likely due to expensive home prices.
Top 10 Metros Homebuyers Are Leaving
- San Francisco, California
- New York, New York
- Los Angeles, California
- Washington D.C.
- Chicago, Illinois
- Boston, Massachusetts
- Seattle, Washington
- Hartford, Connecticut
- Denver, Colorado and Detroit, Michigan, tied for ninth place
The exodus of California residents, which has been a thing for years, really gained traction during the pandemic as permanent remote work became the reality for many employees.
No longer saddled with the burden of living in high-cost cities, many people moved to cities in more affordable states like Nevada and Texas.
The median listing price of homes in California is $796,500, while homes in Nevada and Texas are $436,400 and $361,800, respectively, according to Redfin data.