The Top 5 States For Net Migration Loss

We've gone over the very well-known reasons people are moving to South Florida, especially places like Delray Beach. However, there are two covers to every book and two sides to every coin, and for every person a state gains, another state loses that person. Without delving into too much pessimism, we look into the states that have lost the most people, businesses, and tax revenue, and determine what shared commonalities may be driving these people and their assets to greener pastures.

CALIFORNIA

California has led the league in departures for a few years now. The state includes a mishmash of opposing forces that have made life for working-class Americans nearly impossible. While inflation and crime stifle the quality of life in many places beyond California, it has become so caustic in the Golden State that the middle class has nearly evaporated. A majority of migrants from California have been represented by young families, mobile professionals, and former small business owners looking for greener pastures.

NEW YORK

The state of Florida is no stranger to newcomers from New York. In past years, New Yorkers would buy real estate in Delray Beach to enjoy a summer home or relocate for more benign reasons. Many young professionals would simply follow their grandparents and parents southward, with Florida Atlantic University, in particular, serving as a pipeline to convert young aspiring Northerners into degree-wielding Delray Beach professionals. The past few years have modified the otherwise expected reasons we see New Yorkers heading south. Sadly, economic disincentives, high crime in places like The Boroughs and Rochester, and continued challenges to small businesses have driven some south who had no plans to do so.

ILLINOIS

Much like New York, the flight of citizens from Illinois is centered around its biggest city, Chicago. Plagued with violence, theft, and poor leadership, the city's small businesses, young families, and retiring professionals are searching for greener, and safer pastures to the east and south. Similarly to New York, much of the surrounding area, such as Evanston and Arlington Heights, are lovely places with safe streets and native wealth, but for Chicagoans with a plan and the funds to do so, many have left and not looked back. 

NEW JERSEY

New Jersey may not have the deluge of bad news that the aforementioned three have, but it too has lost many of its most productive citizens. Perhaps no state other than New York is more responsible for incoming residents to Florida than New Jersey, and there are a few speculative reasons as to why. Many newcomers arrived after the south, mainly Florida began to lessen COVID regulations at the same time small business owners in New Jersey saw their businesses forcibly shuttered.

MASSACHUSETTS

Massachusetts has provided little incentive to remain while infrastructure crumbles, housing costs soar and public transit remains unreliable. The largest demographic exiting Massachusettes is the 26-35 group, whose continued exodus poses significant concerns for the taxpayer base and professional pipeline. For what it's worth, Boston has not been part of the national dialogue about the sundering of cities due to crime, drug use, and inflation. 

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