Ask HN: How can we make California sexy again? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: How can we make California sexy again?

7 pointsbsvalley10 comments

I know a lot of people (including natives) who are leaving California right now because of: "high taxes, politics, bad behavior in general as well as housing prices and the fact that cities like LA and SF are turning into open shelters for homeless on the streets". These are all the reasons why people are fleeing California from what I've heard so far. People are moving to Oregon, Washington, Texas, Arizona, etc.

This includes mostly upper middle class (colleagues, friends, etc. from my entourage). How could we avoid losing skilled workers in California? How could we make California super attractive again?

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Fix housing. Real estate hyperinflation is the problem in this state. Most of the other major problems are caused by real estate hyperinflation.

* Take zoning away from local zoning boards or at least place limits on the power of NIMBYs at the state level.

* Reform zoning laws to encourage infill and mixed use development. If local zoning boards won't do this override them at the state level.

* Impose a stiff tax on foreign non-occupant real estate purchases. Houses are for people, not to act as a proxy financial instrument for non-residents to exfiltrate capital and launder money. (I have no opposition to immigrants purchasing homes to live in. I'm talking about non-occupant cash buyers using our real estate as a financial instrument.)

* Repeal proposition 13. It would require a phase-out over a long period of time, but would add tax increases as a counter-pressure against real estate price hyperinflation. As it stands there is no downside for homeowners to do everything in their power to inflate housing.

* Invest a lot more in public transportation to make more of the housing stock reachable and commutable for more people. Some of the money for this could come from taxing foreign non-occupant purchases of RE, etc.

Couldn’t it be argued that these social symptoms are indicative of SF being too “attractive” at one point? Meaning we might have to look for a new solution. Instead of attractive. Perhaps sustainable?

housing is too expensive. should move some companies to Sacramento. SV is a valley, it's surrounded by sea and mountain, it can't expand anymore.

A startup

Tl;dr You don’t.

California’s problems all come from one place - your legislature.

You’ve legislated so that high buildings can’t be built and sprawl can’t happen more than it has. Which causes your housing prices to sky rocket.

You’ve enacted ridiculously high taxes and engaged in making stupid things like owning a plastic box, offering straws, and calling someone by the incorrect pronoun a criminal offense.

You’re homeless population exists due to the climate, the fact there are numerous services to “help” them, and assist them. Without even considering a root cause analysis to resolve it. I.e. you feed and cloth your homeless without finding out why they’re homeless and fixing that.

Your crime is ridiculous due to your proximity with the border, you’re failing school systems and unions that keep bad teachers in place. In addition to your massive residual crime due to the fact people can make more money selling drugs on the corner than they can working a 9-5. Not to mention your police departments basically exist to have their budgets increased and corruption there is ridiculous.

In addition to this you have California alienating entire classes of people; Like Gun Owners; because of ridiculous none-sense feel good laws that lock honest people up in prison; while those who are in gangs are let go.

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California per the most recent numbers is growing population wise. And if you just looked at those numbers you’d be fine.

The truth is California has a massive immigrant population influx. This is why they’re so pro-immigrant. (Which isn’t bad) - The Majority of Americans are moving elsewhere. Texas and Nevada are growing at ridiculous levels due to Californians. Las Vegas housing prices have skyrocketed and the sprawl of Las Vegas is now becoming on par with places such as LA.

The difference? By moving to Vegas/Texas your dollar goes much further and you automatically get a pay raise due to no state income tax. Really the only reason to live in California is for the beach, the climate, perhaps job market (although tech is going elsewhere), and perhaps opportunity to mingle with the likes of the famous.

Even people who have family there or jobs have a hard time. I mapped it out - if I lived in Vegas and had a job in SF. I could commute via Plane twice a week and save money as opposed to actually buying a house or condo.

The same is true for those with families. 60$ Southwest ticket and an hour long flight. No problem.

Seems an honest question should be replied with facts, not Rush Limbaugh rhetoric.

I gave you a compensatory upvote because I agree with some of what you say in spite of mostly considering myself a liberal.

People are too dogmatic about their political ideas and too unwilling to look at areas where their particular brand of politics has failed to produce meaningful positive results. Both conservatives and liberals are guilty of this.

People need to think about politics like engineers. Dump the ideology and football game cheerleading for "my team" and look at what works and what doesn't. Liberals in California should be asking what the hell Texas is doing (or not doing) to maintain low property prices in the face of economic and population growth. Texas and California are quite similar in many ways: big, sun belt, on the border, culturally unique, ethnically diverse, and economically growing. Why can a middle class person afford a house in Texas but not in California?

Of course I suspect the answer is that Texas lets developers build new housing stock in response to market demand, while California lets NIMBYs obstruct at every turn. It's grade school economics. If you have increasing demand and you limit supply, you get runaway price increases.

Amen to that. I'm a card carrying liberal who left New York State for many of the same reasons.

Shameless plug for relocating to Texas: I really love looking at my pay stubs every two weeks and seeing "0" for money paid in state taxes. It really does make you Wonder why they even bother leaving the field on it.

You can make an argument that Texas is more liberal than New York.

In which state can a working class person afford a home?

Most "blue states" have major housing affordability problems. Given that economic equality is a major tenet of liberalism this should be considered a crisis and an embarrassment.

Proud 1st time home buyer in Houston :). I could barely afford my rent in NY. And that was with a room mate!

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