Why Have 1.4 Million People Left New York State Since 2010?

Why are people are fleeing New York State in record numbers?

Disturbing statistics were released by the Empire Center for Public Policy on Monday showing that New Yorkers are leaving the state for greener pastures. The stats show that in the past year over 180,000 more people moved out of New York than moved in from other states. More shockingly, New York State lost 1,379,210 residents between 2010 and 2019. This is the largest population loss of any state in the country.

So why are so many people leaving New York State?

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The most popular explanations for the decrease in the state's population are high taxes, tough regulations and home prices. There seems to be some truth to this since New Jersey has seen a big influx of those ex-New Yorkers. Almost 150,000 moved to the Garden State in the last decade. Home prices in New Jersey, however, aren't much better than New York. So there must be some other reasons for so many people deciding to pack up and leave the Empire State.

Can we just blame it on the poor performance of the Jets and Giants? Probably not.

Statistics show that most of the people who've fled New York have moved to Florida. Over 205,000 New Yorkers have moved to the Sunshine State in the past ten years. Another 77,000 have fled to North Carolina. Other popular retirement states such as Texas and California are on the top of the list of places where New Yorkers have relocated to.

Could it be that New Yorkers have just had enough winter weather? With a string of brutal storms clobbering the state over the past ten years, it's possible that we've just had enough. I know that every February I start to ask myself why I'm still living here. But, once the snow thaws and the springtime rolls around I forget all about the grey and bleak winter and begin to love New York all over again.

We want to know why you think people are leaving New York? Do you blame state politics, the cost of living or the weather? Is there another reason why you think people are leaving the state? Let us know in the comments section below or on our Facebook page.

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