Fewer People Moving to CA, FL

The recession may have ended California and Florida’s time as major migration draws, pushing people toward states with more jobs and affordable housing, such as Texas. The 2010 census shows people continuing to move from the Northeast and Midwest to the South and West, but movement to California and Florida dropped off while migration to Texas (where the unemployment rate is 8.2 percent compared to 12 percent in Florida and California) increased dramatically. Texas’ population rose almost 21 percent over the last 10 years, while California’s rose only 10 percent, the same as the national population. "Over time, the [population] numbers will reflect the rate of job growth," said Stephen Levy, director of the Center for Continuing Study of the California Economy.