The ‘Big Money Show’ analyzes new data showing Los Angeles County has lost tens of thousands of residents, with fewer people arriving to replace them.
Los Angeles County, once a symbol of American prosperity and Hollywood dreams, has earned the title of the nation’s leader in population loss.
The latest US Census data shows that between July 1, 2024, and July 1, 2025, 53,421 residents left the county, marking the largest decline in the U.S. In addition, Los Angeles County dropped from approximately 10 million residents in 2020 to approximately 9.7 million today.
“There’s a real sense of burnout. They’re paying ridiculous taxes and getting nothing at all,” RIVANI founder Robert Rivani — who has seen a massive exodus of companies moving their headquarters to his Miami building from California, including Playboy — told Fox News Digital. “People feel like they’re living in a place where they’re struggling financially and in turn they’re dealing with increased crime, reduced services, and the feeling that everyone around them is trying to leave.”
“When I moved my family and my company here, everyone thought I was crazy,” Rivani continued. “They were confident that LA would bounce back and that the problems were temporary. I saw the writing on the wall, and Miami has proven over and over again that we made the right call.”
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“It’s not just one thing, it’s a broken state. Taxes, lack of security, red tape,” Compass’ Chad Carroll told Fox News Digital. “I have a client from California whose home was broken into twice in the last six months. Every political environment there is destroying the state.”
Pedestrians cross Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles, California, at sunset. (Getty Images)
“These are people who have spent their lives building businesses and wealth,” Carroll added, “and they feel that California has become a place that takes everything and gives very little back in terms of safety, infrastructure and opportunity.”
Fleeing Angelenos are looking for places with a lower cost of living and different political climates. Census data shows Riverside and San Bernardino gained 21,131 Los Angeles County residents, while Las Vegas saw an increase of more than 21,000 last year.
Carroll, an alum of “Million Dollar Listing Miami,” and Rivani argue that people gravitate to places where “their money goes and they feel welcome.”
Both also warn that the declining population is helping to “directly affect” the financial core of Los Angeles.
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“The value of real estate is driven by demand and the quality of the surrounding tax base. When the top 1% flees, it takes the tax money that funds parks, police and schools with them, and that has a big drag on the bottom line,” Carroll said. “You can’t lose 300,000 residents, especially high-income ones, and expect your property values to keep up with the growth we’re seeing in the Sunbelt.”
“Those services are what keep the city running. If you don’t have a tax base to support it, everything goes down. And if the government’s only response is to tax whoever is left behind, it creates a vicious cycle where more people pack up and leave,” said Rivani.
Los Angeles isn’t alone, as other high-tax, high-regulation areas in California are also declining. Orange County lost 8,520 residents; San Diego lost 5,294; and Ventura County decreased by 2,580.
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“The numbers don’t lie, and they should be a big wake-up call,” Carroll urged. “We are witnessing a historic transfer of wealth that will define the foreseeable future of US real estate. With the growth of the technology and financial sectors in Miami and West Palm Beach, the Sunbelt is the new frontier for American success.”
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In recent months, many wealthy Californians have moved across the state, and top real estate developers told Fox News Digital that more than $126 million in sales in 60 days to buyers in California and New York — driven by California’s proposed 5% millionaire tax and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s talk of higher property taxes.
“Los Angeles is not the Hollywood star it once was, and I don’t think it can go back to that. The government that runs it today has created a reality that people don’t want to live in, and it’s very difficult to change that kind of decline. If the city loses its light, it’s almost impossible to get it back,” said Rivani. “Polls show that the leading candidates for governor are Republicans, which tells you how fed up the people are with the direction of the state. It would take a lot of change to bring it back to its glory days.”
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