Breaking News/11.19.2024

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Ma$$ exodus: Young, mobile and more affluent residents are fleeing Massachusetts in search of greener - and less outrageously expensive - pastures

A surge of higher-earning professionals and business owners, among others, have bailed on the Bay State in the wake of the pandemic and the rise of remote work, taking with them billions in annual income.

That’s one of the key findings “Mass Out-Migration: Outflux of Wealth and Residents Continues,” a new report just out this morning from the Pioneer Institute.

Massachusetts saw 71,000 residents pack up and leave between 2020 and the end of 2022. Eighty percent of those leaving the state made over $100,000 a year, with those making over $200,000 a year accounting for more than half of the exodus.

All told, those leaving Massachusetts took with them nearly $11 billion in annual income as well over that three year period, than during the much longer stretch from 2012 to 2019, according to Pioneer.

Along with a loss for local businesses, the exodus is also likely to deliver a hit to state coffers, with hundreds of millions in tax revenue literally walking out the door as well.

The top destinations? New Hampshire and Florida, both of which don’t have state income taxes.

“The decision to move out of state is not one most people or businesses take lightly, nor is it likely due to a single tax or issue,” writes Aidan Enright, Pioneer’s economic research associate and the report’s author. “Such monumental changes are the culmination of a series of events—and a loss of trust. Thus, it is imperative that states losing residents and businesses take a hard look in the mirror to assess what is going wrong and seek to re-right the ship.”

That said, the relentless rise in the cost of living in Massachusetts has helped push some residents to leave, with the state having some of the highest housing and health care costs in the country, to name just two major stressors.

Massachusetts is also not doing itself any favors on the tax policy front, what with the passage of the millionaires tax a couple years ago and one of the highest estate taxes in the country, the Pioneer report notes.

But all these cost factors and tax issues have been a source of concern and discontent for years now.

What has changed has been the rise of remote work, which has suddenly enabled tech workers and other professionals to relocate to other states and regions and still hang onto their well-paying jobs back in Massachusetts, Enright tells Contrarian Boston.

“You can get more bang for your buck - you are making a Boston wage with the cost of living of a much more affordable state,” Enright said. “That is a pretty good bargain to make.”

Bring your opinions and hot takes: Contrarian Boston to host a live chat on the housing crisis in Massachusetts

Fed up with one of the nation’s most dysfunctional housing markets? Have some ideas on how to fix it?

Contrarian Boston will be hosting a live chat from noon to 1 p.m. this Wednesday for paid subscribers.

We’ll discuss what has gone so wrong with the housing market, both locally and now nationally as well, and what can be done to fix things.

Join us at Substack Chat and look forward to seeing you there.