Even the state's celebrated assets - year-round sunshine, sandy beaches and proximity to the glamour of Hollywood - can't compensate for the soaring cost of living in the nation's most populous state, according to those that have decided to leave. For the fourth year running, more residents left California than moved there from other states. In the year ending July 1, 2008, the state lost 144,000 people, more than any other US state, according to census estimates. California, which has lured people throughout history from the Gold Rush to Hollywood, the Dot com boom and beyond, hasn't witnessed such a prolonged period of departures since the downturn of the early 1990s. Those leaving cite the worsening unemployment rate - 8.4 per cent, the third-highest in the nation - high taxes and rents, rampant foreclosure rates yet property prices still out of the reach of many families. Most businesses are shedding jobs - even in the entertainment industry - and with the state grappling a budget gap projected to swell to over 41 billion dollars in 18 months, higher taxes and drastic cuts to public services seem all but inevitable. "You see wages go down and the cost of living go up," Mike Reilly, 38, who is moving his family to Colorado, told the Associated Press. The engineering contractor, who lives 80 miles north of Santa Barbara, said his move followed years of rising taxes, dissatisfaction with schools, illegal immigration and traffic congestion, all of which had tarnished his image of his home state. In Colorado, his family will pay less than one third of the property taxes they pay in California. The flow of people leaving dates from the housing bubble, which propelled property prices far higher than most could afford, then continued as the downturn began and recession kicked in. The most popular destinations for those quitting California are Texas, Nevada, Arizona and Washington state, the U-Haul truck rental company told the Los Angeles Times. Overall, the number of people leaving remains tiny given the state's population - 38 million - which is actually increasing due to births and immigration from overseas. Despite this, some believe California's current situation is so dire it will only encourage more to flee. Although it boasts the world's eighth largest economy, the state is facing "financial Armageddon", according to governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, and could soon become the first in the US to go broke. "Who can blame them?" writes Whittier Daily News columnist Frank Girardot of those leaving the state. "We have traffic problems, crime problems, immigration problems and state and local governments that are completely dysfunctional. Wages are falling. The cost of living is rising - fast. "The Golden State is quickly becoming something other than the promised land it was since the first Spanish explorers set foot here all those centuries ago." Others see the situation as calling for re-evaluation rather than rejection. "I don't think the California dream, per se, is over. It has become and will continue to become grittier," Gregory Rodriguez, New America Foundation senior fellow, told the Associated Press. "Now, perhaps, we have to reassess the California of our imagination."Soaring cost of living drives residents from California
The Californian dream is turning sour for increasing numbers of West Coast residents who are abandoning the Golden State and heading east in search of a better life.
Tuesday, 13 January 2009
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