NYC lost high earners and billions in income, with migrants reversing population decline: report

Fox News

02-05-2025

Escape from New York City.
New York City witnessed an outflow of tens of thousands of high-earning residents from 2017 through 2022 who took billions of dollars of income with them, although the Big Apple saw a population increase in 2023 and 2024 spurred on by an influx of migrants, according to a new report.
The Big Apple's population started to decline in 2017 and then plummeted during the pandemic by nearly a half-million residents between April 2020 and July 2022, according to the report by the nonpartisan Citizens Budget Commission (CBC), based in Albany.
The report notes that many of the transplants fled to Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties in Florida, and the total amount of personal income to leave the state for Florida came in at $13.7 billion.
For instance, individuals moving to Miami-Dade County had an average income exceeding $266,000, while those relocating to Palm Beach County averaged around $189,000.
Those leaving were driven by the pandemic, immigration policy, affordability concerns, quality of life issues and work opportunities, per the report. New York City implemented severe lock-downs while Florida, after a brief shutdown, aggressively began reopening and banned vaccine mandates by employers and businesses.
As well as Florida, New Yorkers headed to suburbs on Long Island and Westchester, and nearby states like New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania. Those leaving the tristate region also moved to California and Texas.
"The people leaving New York City may be choosing a place offering them a higher value proposition through a better mix of quality of life and cost of living," the report states. "Notably, Florida and Texas have lower taxes. While New Jersey and the rest of New York State have relatively high taxes—even if lower than New York City—they apparently offer amenities making the choice to leave worth it for some."
Recently, the outward trend reversed with the population of New York City growing by 120,000 residents over the last two years, per the report. Although not mentioned in the report, that would still indicate a net outflow of New York residents leaving the city, given New York City Mayor Eric Adams said the city has catered to more than 234,000 asylum seekers since the spring of 2022.
Andrew Rein, president of the CBC, said New York City's long-term success depends on its ability to stay competitive.
"With the evolving economy, affordability, and quality of life challenges, New York City's competitiveness—its ability to attract and retain residents and businesses—is one of the most important issues of our time," Rein said.
New York state and its localities are the national high-tax leaders, having collected the most taxes per person—23% more than second-place California and 79% more than the national average, per the report. New York maintains its first-place ranking when assessing taxes as a portion of personal income.
With a population of around 8.25 million people, New York City's FY 2025 budget is $110 billion.
In comparison, Florida's population is nearly three times as big, at 23.35 million people, with an annual budget of $115.6 billion. The Sunshine State famously has no income tax.
According to a survey by the CBC, New Yorkers feel quality of life and public safety declined from 2017 to 2023, with only 30% rating life as good or excellent, down from 51% with many feeling unsafe in subways and parks, especially at night.
Still, most view local parks, playgrounds and cultural offerings positively, which helps attract residents and tourists, the report said.