New Yorkers leaving the city had median earnings of $49,000 as life in NYC becomes ever more of a financial pipe dream

• The population of New York City has fallen since 2020.
• People are being priced out, with the median wage of those leaving in 2022 lower than the year before.

New York City's population has plummeted by nearly half a million between 2020 and 2022 — shrinking over 5% — according to a new report by the New York state comptroller published on Monday.

Part of this stems from New Yorkers being priced out of the city. In 2022, the median wage of those leaving the city fell to $49,000, an 18% decrease from the previous year, per the report.

Meanwhile, newcomers to the city had a median wage of $51,000 in 2022. This marked a 13% increase from the previous year.

For context, the national median wage of workers in 2022 was $46,310, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

New York City's demographic makeup is also changing, with the report finding that "the city's populace is overall older and wealthier, with a rebounding population of international migrants and declining shares of White and Black New Yorkers."

The only demographic group analyzed by the city that saw growth from 2020 to 2022 was seniors, which increased by 3.3%. In contrast, the population of under-18s fell by 7.5% during the same period.

"In the pandemic's wake, we see an altered population, and it raises longstanding concerns about the cost of living, the growing wealth gap, the need to preserve a strong middle class, and the challenges of serving an aging population, while ensuring that families are able to raise their children here," said state comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.

Issues of affordability have long plagued New York City.

The New York City True Cost of Living report, published in April, found that half of the city's working-age households earn less than the $100,000 necessary to meet their basic needs. That amounts to nearly 3 million people.

The lack of affordable housing led the city to unveil a pilot program in November, offering homeowners up to $395,000 to build an extra dwelling in their homes. The effort is part of the city's new housing reforms, which aim to build 100,000 new homes.

Those leading the charge out of increasingly unaffordable cities tended to be millennial homebuyers, according to data from the National Association of Realtors.

In the wake of the pandemic, however, many of those who left have found themselves regretting trading in expensive city apartments close to friends for a lonelier life out in the suburbs.