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Many California Out-of-state residents get huge savings on housing costs and easy ways to own a home as affordability concerns are difficult.
A recent analysis by the California Policy Lab at UC Berkeley, using data that anonymously tracks similar households over time from 2016 to 2025, found that Californians who move they tend to move to more affordable areas and are more likely to become homeowners in the process.
The report found that on average, Californians who leave the state end up in neighborhoods where housing costs are less than $672 a month — facing an average cost of $2,376 in California compared to $1,705 in their new community. The analysis includes mortgage payments or rent, utilities, property taxes and monthly home insurance costs.
Renters who moved from California saw rent drop by nearly 30%, or $631 per month, in their new location. Homeowners also get more affordable prices for the median home, which costs about $396,000, or 48%, less than the median where they live in California.
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Californians who leave the state have found savings on their housing costs and a more affordable way to own a home. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)
That flexibility helps make homeownership more common in their new neighborhood, by 60% who have their own homes compared to 53% in the California area of origin.
In contrast, those moving to the state of California saw slightly higher costs, with the average monthly housing cost of $2,263 rising to $2,277 in their new home in the Golden State.
People who moved to California generally experienced a significant drop in their monthly housing costs compared to where they lived, rising from $1,754 in their out-of-state home to $2,418 in their new community in California.
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Most Californians who leave the Golden State go to nearby states. (Stock)
After seven years, people moving from California are 48 percent, or 11 points, more likely to own a home than they were before living in California. People who moved to California were only 27%, or 6 percentage points, more likely to become homeowners after seven years.
“The price of the California dream has increased, and many families are leaving the state for less expensive places,” said Evan White, executive director of the California Policy Lab at UC Berkeley and co-author of the study. he told Realtor.com.
“The difference these measures make is clear. The places they go to are half the price, and they end up with a greater chance of owning a home within just a few years,” added White.
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People from California were more likely to become homeowners, the report said. (Kevin Carter/Getty Images)
The California Policy Lab analysis also looked at states with net migration to and from California.
The state with the largest influx of immigrants from California was Nevadawhich gained 81 more people per 10,000 per year from California in total from 2016 to 2025.
IdahoOregon and Arizona were the next three states with the largest net in-flows, reaching 64, 37 and 36 per 10,000 over the past decade, respectively.
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Other states that have seen large influxes of new residents from across the country have been less well-known by departing Californians. Texas gained 11 more people from California per 10,000 each year, while Tennessee gained 13 and Florida gained just four.
