- Home›
- Life›
- news»
- Of course Californians are pouring into Texas, the mayor of Dallas said. The state has the 2 things everyone wants.
Of course Californians are pouring into Texas, the mayor of Dallas said. The state has the 2 things everyone wants.
Alcynna Lloyd,Noah Sheidlower,Matt TurnerJan 21, 2024, 00:43 IST
- Texas is the second-most-popular state to move to in the country.
- Eric Johnson, the mayor of Dallas, crowed about its appeal in Davos, Switzerland, this week.
People shouldn't mess with Texas.
Just look at its dominance: Texas is the second-most-popular state to move to, trailing only Florida.Over the past few years, hundreds of thousands of transplants have relocated to Texas — drawn in part by its reputation for a cheaper cost of living and abundant job opportunities, which have helped propel its economy to among the strongest in the world.Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson told Business Insider at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, that two things consistently attract Americans to move to the state.He said newcomers are lured by the relatively cheaper cost of homes and other essentials. In addition, transplants from California are largely pursuing a better quality of life."People are moving to Texas from California because of our politics and culture," Johnson, who is in his fifth year as mayor and recently switched political parties from Democratic to Republican, said. "They're not trying to turn Texas into where they came from."
Who's moving to Texas, by the numbers
More than 668,300 people moved into Texas between 2021 and 2022, according to the Census Bureau's tabulation of American Community Survey, or ACS, data.
More than 102,400 of these movers came from California, followed by 41,700 from Florida and 30,900 from New York.
Texas, in particular, is attracting young people. A BI analysis of individual-level data from the 2022 ACS, assembled by the University of Minnesota's IPUMS program, found that most people moving to Texas are millennials — 40.5% — and Gen Zers — 29.9%.
One of Texas' lures is relatively affordable homes
Texas homes remain comparatively affordable — an advantage when US housing prices are coming close to all-time highs.
"The housing market in Dallas is very affordable to Californians and New Yorkers," Johnson said.Pengyu Cheng, a tech-company program manager, left San Francisco for the suburbs of Austin in 2021 after growing tired of the Bay Area's high home prices and competitive atmosphere.In San Francisco, Cheng and his wife rented a two-bedroom apartment for $3,100 a month. In Texas, the couple purchased a two-story home for $825,000, which they said was a fraction of what it would have cost in California."Every time we looked at Redfin or read an article about median housing prices, it was the same story: The real-estate market was just getting more expensive," Cheng, 40, previously told BI. "We went from being squeezed inside a small apartment to enjoying a more than 3,300-square-foot home with an office and play area for our son."BI's analysis of Census data shows that about 70% of people moving to Texas are renters, while 30% are homeowners. Previous BI reporting suggests that housing affordability is top of mind for many of these movers. As of 2022, the average home price in the state for those moving in was $451,568, lower than the national average of $493,000, according to Census data.But newcomers flocking to the state have led to higher home prices and property taxes — especially in large metropolitan areas such as Dallas and Austin. This has made housing less affordable for many locals, causing some Texas residents to, in turn, relocate to more affordable states themselves.Johnson reminded BI that all housing costs are relative: "When you're talking about 'it's expensive to live in Dallas,' you're comparing Dallas to the Dallas of yesteryear."Johnson said constructing more homes — especially in Dallas — is crucial to keeping homes relatively cheap. He hopes to make it easier for homebuilders to receive permits for construction."You have to encourage the private sector to build more houses," he said. "Because right now in Dallas, it's not easy. It should be easier. Make zoning less convoluted — zone more places for residential construction and make it easier to build."
Political expression and safety concerns motivate some to move to Texas
Some movers to Texas have told BI they didn't always agree with the politics of the states they left behind and wanted to join communities with similar perspectives and a better cultural fit.
Johnson said that many transplants feel they have greater freedom to express political views, adding that many residents also feel safer in cities such as Dallas.He said Dallas residents have benefited from investments in the police department and infrastructure, including new sidewalks and smooth streets."The difference between Dallas and a lot of our major city competitors is we want to let the businesses and the residents be the star of the show, not the government," Johnson said.He added that newcomers are embracing Texas for all that it offers."The Californians are the most outspoken and the most adamant about how much they love their new home, and how much they really don't miss at all what they left," he said.