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Los Angeles County, once the symbol of American prosperity and Hollywood dreams, has earned the title of the nation’s leader in population loss.
The latest U.S. Census data shows shows that between July 1, 2024, and July 1, 2025, 53,421 residents left the county, marking the largest decline in the U.S. Additionally, Los Angeles County has fallen from about 10 million residents in 2020 to roughly 9.7 million today.
“There is a real sense of burnout. They are paying insane taxes and getting absolutely nothing in return,” RIVANI founder Robert Rivani — who has seen a big migration of companies moving their headquarters to his Miami building from California, including Playboy — told Fox News Digital. “People feel like they’re living in a place that’s draining them financially and in exchange they’re dealing with rising crime, shrinking services, and a sense that everyone around them is trying to leave too.”
“When I moved my family and my company here, everyone thought I was crazy,” Rivani continued. “They were convinced LA was going to bounce back and that the problems were temporary. I saw the writing on the wall, and Miami has proven over and over that we made the right call.”
COUNTRY ARTIST SOUNDS ALARM ON CALIFORNIA’S DECLINE
“It isn’t just one factor, it’s the breaking point phenomenon. The taxes, the lack of safety, the red tape,” Compass’ Chad Carroll also told Fox News Digital. “I have a client from California whose home was broken into twice in the past six months. The whole political landscape there is destroying the state.”
“These are individuals who have spent their lives building businesses and wealth,” Carroll added, “and they feel that California has become a place that takes everything and gives back very little in terms of safety, infrastructure and opportunity.”
The fleeing Angelenos are seeking areas with lower living costs and different political climates. Census data indicate that Riverside and San Bernardino gained 21,131 residents from Los Angeles County, while Las Vegas saw a boost of more than 21,000 people last year.
Carroll, an alum of “Million Dollar Listing Miami,” and Rivani argue people are gravitating toward places where “their money stretches further and they feel welcome.”
They both also warn that a shrinking population serves “a direct hit” to Los Angeles’ financial backbone.
“Real estate value is driven by demand and the quality of the surrounding tax base. When the top 1% flee, they take the tax revenue that funds the parks, the police and the schools with them, and that has a major trickle-down effect,” Carroll said. “You can’t lose 300,000 residents, specifically high-earners, and expect your property values to keep pace with the growth we’re seeing in the Sunbelt.”
“Those services are what keep a city functional. If you don’t have the tax base to support them, everything declines. And when the government’s only answer is to tax whoever is left even more, you create a vicious cycle where even more people pack up and go,” Rivani expanded.
Los Angeles isn’t alone, as other high-tax, high-regulation hubs in California also saw significant population drops. Orange County lost 8,520 residents; San Diego lost 5,294; and Ventura County saw a decline of 2,580.
“The numbers don’t lie, and they should be a big wake-up call,” Carroll urged. “We are seeing a historic wealth transfer that is going to define the foreseeable future of U.S. real estate. With the rise of the tech and finance sectors in Miami and West Palm Beach, the Sunbelt is the new frontier of American success.”
In recent months, many wealthy Californians have relocated across state lines, with top luxury developers previously telling Fox News Digital that more than $126 million in sales were secured in just 60 days from buyers in California and New York — driven by California’s proposed 5% one-time billionaire tax and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s talk of higher property taxes.
“Los Angeles is not the Hollywood star it once was, and I don’t think it can return to that. The government running it today has created a reality that people don’t want to live in, and it’s extremely hard to reverse that kind of decline. Once a city loses its shine, it’s almost impossible to get it back,” Rivani said. “The polls show leading candidates for governor are Republican, which tells you how fed up people are with the direction of the state. It would take a lot of reform to bring it back to its glory days.”
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