Families with Young Children & In Search of Housing Drive State Population Loss — Affordability Crisis Fueling Out-migration
Households with young children 40% more likely to leave New York State — and twice as likely to move out of New York City
36% of households leaving NYS are moving in search of affordable housing — more than twice the share before Covid
90% of NY State’s population loss is driven by NYC — the most expensive part of NYS
NEW YORK | The Fiscal Policy Institute today released a new report in its state migration series, Who Is Leaving New York State? Social and Labor Characteristics, which finds that affordability — and in particular housing and the cost of raising a family — are increasingly driving State population loss.
“The data illustrate what many New Yorkers already know to be true: affordability challenges are increasingly fueling the city and state’s population loss. Families with young children and New Yorkers in search of housing are leaving at higher rates — indicating that those most exposed to affordability challenges are increasingly moving out. And while the state’s affordability crisis has long strained New Yorkers, the data indicate that these challenges have taken on greater salience in the wake of the Covid pandemic,” said FPI Director Nathan Gusdorf.
Gusdorf continued,“Heightened out-migration is reflective of a policy failure: the State is not ensuring that families can afford to grow and establish financial security while remaining in New York. Additionally, New York’s population loss poses a serious challenge to the State’s long-run economic prospects. Ultimately, policy interventions that increase the supply of housing across the income distribution and that support New Yorkers in affording childcare would most directly confront New York’s affordability crisis.”
Key Findings:
Affordability — in particular housing and the cost of raising a family — is increasingly driving NYS population loss:
- Households with young children are 40% more likely to leave the state than households without young children — and twice as likely to move out of New York City.
- 36% of households leaving New York State are moving in search of more affordable housing — more than twice the share before Covid.
- 90% of New York State’s population loss is driven by New York City, the most expensive part of the state.
- The highest income New Yorkers leave the State at lower rates than all other income brackets (see FPI’s migration series, part I).
Black and Hispanic New Yorkers are leaving NYS at higher rates:
- Black New Yorkers are leaving New York State at more than 50% the rate of white New Yorkers — a pattern reflecting the fact that 85% of state out-migration is from New York City, which has a disproportionate number of Black residents relative to the state as a whole.
- Hispanic New Yorkers have become increasingly likely to leave, with out-migration rates 38% higher than white New Yorkers in the years since the pandemic.
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Families with Young Children & In Search of Housing Drive State Population Loss — Affordability Crisis Fueling Out-migration
Households with young children 40% more likely to leave New York State — and twice as likely to move out of New York City
36% of households leaving NYS are moving in search of affordable housing — more than twice the share before Covid
90% of NY State’s population loss is driven by NYC — the most expensive part of NYS
NEW YORK | The Fiscal Policy Institute today released a new report in its state migration series, Who Is Leaving New York State? Social and Labor Characteristics, which finds that affordability — and in particular housing and the cost of raising a family — are increasingly driving State population loss.
“The data illustrate what many New Yorkers already know to be true: affordability challenges are increasingly fueling the city and state’s population loss. Families with young children and New Yorkers in search of housing are leaving at higher rates — indicating that those most exposed to affordability challenges are increasingly moving out. And while the state’s affordability crisis has long strained New Yorkers, the data indicate that these challenges have taken on greater salience in the wake of the Covid pandemic,” said FPI Director Nathan Gusdorf.
Gusdorf continued,“Heightened out-migration is reflective of a policy failure: the State is not ensuring that families can afford to grow and establish financial security while remaining in New York. Additionally, New York’s population loss poses a serious challenge to the State’s long-run economic prospects. Ultimately, policy interventions that increase the supply of housing across the income distribution and that support New Yorkers in affording childcare would most directly confront New York’s affordability crisis.”
Key Findings:
Affordability — in particular housing and the cost of raising a family — is increasingly driving NYS population loss:
- Households with young children are 40% more likely to leave the state than households without young children — and twice as likely to move out of New York City.
- 36% of households leaving New York State are moving in search of more affordable housing — more than twice the share before Covid.
- 90% of New York State’s population loss is driven by New York City, the most expensive part of the state.
- The highest income New Yorkers leave the State at lower rates than all other income brackets (see FPI’s migration series, part I).
Black and Hispanic New Yorkers are leaving NYS at higher rates:
- Black New Yorkers are leaving New York State at more than 50% the rate of white New Yorkers — a pattern reflecting the fact that 85% of state out-migration is from New York City, which has a disproportionate number of Black residents relative to the state as a whole.
- Hispanic New Yorkers have become increasingly likely to leave, with out-migration rates 38% higher than white New Yorkers in the years since the pandemic.