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The Second Coming of California

Migration from California
Migration from California – Where do they hail from? (Data from IRS/OOEA)

Migration to Oregon from California is picking up again according to the Oregon Office of Economic Analysis, which noted in a recent blog post that thus far, 2015 is drawing similar numbers of migrants to the state as during the housing boom.

So why do they come?

“Beyond a high quality of life, or high quality of place, migration is usually driven, economically speaking, by job opportunities and relative home prices. Where can one find a job and where can one find an affordable place to live, at least relatively speaking? Despite the rhetoric out there, Oregon when compared with our southern neighbor, ranks well along both of these lines in the past 25 years,” notes Josh Lehner of the Oregon Office of Economic Development in his post.

Migration from California to Oregon continues to be strong and economically speaking, that is a good thing. It injects our region with a skilled workforce and younger families that arrive to plant roots. Retirees bring their wealth and wisdom to the region.

Bend, Oregon in particular is one of the fastest growing cities in the country (again).  Oregon Business  posted a blog, “Bendafornia“,  attributing the influx of migrants to improved real estate markets in California (particularly Northern California), active baby boomers looking for the next big adventure and a bustling job market in Oregon.

View the chart above for a snapshot of where Californians are coming from but note the data is from IRS reports dating 2007-2008 to 2009-2010. Data will likely be different today with all the tech outposts migrating from the Bay Area to Portland in recent years.