Escape From New York

While the population of New York City is growing, the share of people leaving is greater. In fact, new Census data show that more people are leaving The Empire State than any other in the country.

Between July 2017 and July 2018, New York lost the most of any U.S. state, with a loss of 48,560 residents. Upstate, 42 out of 50 counties have had population declines since the start of this decade, 2010. In New York City, 131 people left the metro every day in 2017, up from 43 per day in 2014, Realtor.com reports. E.J. McMahon, research director for the Albany-based conservative think tank Empire Center for Public Policy, says “Much more needs to be done to improve the basic climate for economic growth” adding, “It’s just not dynamic enough to hold more of its people. The thought is, ‘I like it but I can’t afford it here and it’s hard."

In 2017, with a baby on the way, Lia LoBello Reynolds and Colin Reynolds realized staying in the city wasn’t feasible and commuting to and from the suburbs each day wasn’t a life they wanted. The couple got new jobs in Pennsylvania and bought a home in a small town 27 miles west of Philadelphia. “I just couldn’t imagine being on a train for three hours of my life every day just because I want to work in a city I couldn’t afford to live in,” said Colin Reynolds, a 34-year-old who works in digital marketing.

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