Crippling home prices, traffic congestion, high taxes and the rising cost ofliving have all contributed to an increase in “net outward migration”from California, particularly in the Bay Area.
The Mercury News reports that over 61,000 more people have exited California
for another state than the number of people who moved into the state overthe duration of 12 months ending on June 30.
In addition, the Bay Area’s middle-class jobs are dwindling at a stunningrate. The Mercury News notes that a state labor report released on Fridayreveals that in since 1989, the middle class has diminished by at least 10percent, having accounted for 56 percent of all households in Silicon Valleythat year, but dropping to just 45.7 percent by 2013.
The median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment in San Francisco is $3,490. Theprices are creeping up in Southern California, too, where the median monthlyrent for a one-bedroom apartment is $3,000 in Santa Monica, $2,930 inVenice, and $2,550 in the rapidly up-and-coming downtown Los Angelesneighborhood.
The tech industry is often blamed for high rents and rising housing prices.Individuals working in that sector, who are typically better able to affordnew homes or the cost of remodeling, buy in neighborhoods that have often
been home to middle-to-lower-class residents, who are then faced with thechallenge of relocation.
Such is the case with areas like the historically black Bayview-HuntersPoint in San Francisco, whose population has been forced to move to lessexpensive areas. A growing number of middle-class employees, particularly inthe service industry, are also struggling to pay rents in the cities wherethey live, and are relegated to longer commutes from cheaper.
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