'It's a No-Brainer': NYC and SF Tech Workers Move to LA for Sun, Space and Cheaper Rent During the Pandemic

In the October 1, 2020 dot.LA article, reporter Ben Bergman reports on NYC and SF tech workers who have relocated to Los Angeles for sun, space, and cheaper rent during COVID.

Bergman reports that there are still more people leaving Los Angeles then arriving during the pandemic, accelerating a yearslong trend of migration to cheaper cities such as Las Vegas, Phoenix and Sacramento. But for those coming from New York or San Francisco who are wealthy enough to afford million dollar-plus mortgages, L.A. still offers a relative bargain. According to Zillow, the median home value in San Francisco is $1,447,191 and the median rental price in San Francisco is $4,500 compared to $752,508 for homes in Los Angeles and $3,500 for rentals.

“It’s a no-brainer” said Nick Dowdle, a growth product manager at the real estate startup ZeroDown who has recently relocated from San Francisco’s trendy Castro District to Marina Del Rey. “My productivity has gone up and I’ve become happier. If I have to work from home, I’d rather be somewhere warm and sunny.”

Feverish demand, driven by the likes of Dowdle, has driven L.A. asking prices up by 17% from a year ago, twice the average increase nationwide.

"Prices are growing like never before," said Taylor Marr, lead economist at Redfin. "There is a massive price appreciation in what sellers can ask for."

Ferocious bidding wars have returned and realtors say they are getting so much interest from New Yorkers that they can hardly keep up, especially on the city's more prosperous Westside.

“It’s as if as soon as COVID-19 hit everyone wanted to flee New York,” said Nina Kubicek, a global luxury realtor at Coldwell Banker. “We couldn’t believe how inundated we got this year with a flood of New Yorkers and East Coast clients that either want to lease or purchase here.”

You can read the full dot.LA article here.