Miami’s Mass Migration: Unraveling the Exodus of 80K Residents in a 1970’s Déjà Vu

Miami’s Mass Migration: In terms of crypto moguls and tech men, Miami has recently declined. Despite Florida’s growth, which helped it become the fastest-growing state between 2021 and 2022, Miami-Dade County has been losing more residents than it has been gaining in recent years.

According to data from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis cited by The Wall Street Journal, the population of Miami-Dade County will decrease between 2019 and 2022. Since 1970, this was the first multi-year population decline in the county.

Given that the county’s population nearly quadrupled between 1970 and 2010, according to the Florida Regional Economic Analysis project, the current decline is all the more remarkable.

Miami’s Mass Migration: Unraveling the Exodus of 80K Residents in a 1970’s Déjà Vu

According to a study conducted by the Brookings Institution using data from the United States Census, the county lost approximately 80,000 residents between 2020 and 2022 due to net migration to other regions of Florida and other states.

Although Miami has one of the nation’s lowest unemployment rates, rising home prices may force some to relocate.

Zillow, a provider of real estate data, reports that the average price of a home in Miami is now just over $550,000, an increase of about 8% from the previous year. The Journal cites Zillow statistics indicating a 53% increase in Miami property prices since June 2020.

Zillow reports that the median property value in Miami-Dade County has increased by approximately 7% in the past year, reaching over $490,000. Even renters are struggling to make ends meet.

San Francisco has the nation’s highest proportion of “cost-burdened renters” (30% or more of their household income), making it the most expensive rental market. According to a study conducted by the Joint Centre for Housing Studies at Harvard, 61 percent of Miami’s renters suit this description.

Estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau place the median county income in the vicinity of $57,815 for 2017-2021. People are leaving Central Florida for the more affordable and spacious houses in the adjacent counties.

According to The Journal, a couple recently sold their 1,000-square-foot Miami residence and bought a larger property in Ocala, which is 4.5 hours away by car. According to the Journal, the husband still makes a weekly trip back to Miami to work as a barber, and the wife is having trouble obtaining employment in her new city.

People fleeing Miami flock to Orlando, the Tampa Bay area, Atlanta, and Jacksonville, where the average home price is at least $100,000 less than in Miami, according to a recent LinkedIn study cited by the Journal.

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