By: Jordan Baker

Former New Yorkers who have traded the high taxes, crime, and stress of city life for Florida’s sunshine and savings say they’re not looking back — and as the New York Post reported, their exodus has taken a serious toll on the Empire State’s finances.

A study by the nonpartisan Citizens Budget Commission, cited by the NY Post, revealed that more than 125,000 people fled New York for Florida between 2018 and 2022, taking nearly $14 billion in income with them. Many of those making the move are high earners, with around 26,000 who landed in Miami-Dade County boasting an average per-capita income of over $266,000, the NY Post reported.

Among the exodus is Alex Taub, co-founder of the entertainment tech startup Goblintown. He told the Post he moved with his wife and two children to Miami in July 2020 during COVID lockdowns. “People thought we were crazy when we told them we were leaving,” Taub said. “But it just kept getting bleaker in New York.” Now, for the same cost as their old Upper West Side two-bedroom apartment, they live in a five-bedroom, four-bathroom home with a pool and backyard.

Taub, who once thought it “blasphemous” to leave the city where he built his career, said the lower taxes and better work-life balance have made Florida a better fit. “I’ve never worked harder in my life, but at 5 o’clock, I can jump in the pool with my kids,” he told the NY Post.

Bustle Media CEO Bryan Goldberg echoed similar sentiments, telling the Post that South Florida’s manageable local leadership has been a major upside. “I can get on the phone with the Miami Beach mayor any time — and so can any of my neighbors,” Goldberg said. “Once you’ve experienced that, it’s impossible to go back to the Kafkaesque NYC experience.”

According to the NY Post, many of those who left are so-called “snowbirds” — retirees who once wintered in Florida but now stay year-round. But the real shift happened during the pandemic, said luxury retail consultant Melanie Holland, when even younger professionals seized on Florida’s lower cost of living and family-friendly lifestyle. Her clients, she told the Post, ask: “Why pay NYC taxes when my Walgreens is shut down due to theft, or I step over homeless people just to get to work?”

Holland added that, while some former New Yorkers miss the city’s energy, most are staying put after investing the time and effort into selling their properties and establishing Florida residency. Many, she said, “hate what New York City has become,” citing crime, quality-of-life concerns, and the “stench of weed” as daily frustrations.

David Feingold, CEO of Broadstreet Global, told the Post that in just 18 months, 20 members of his team have requested to relocate to South Florida. While taxes and weather have always made Florida appealing, he said, the new factors — crime, immigration, and general urban decay — tipped the scale. “None of them regret it,” he said. “They’ve found new ways to enjoy life—bought boats, golf clubs. No one’s missing MoMA.”

David Goldberg, a general partner at Alpaca VC, told the Post he and his family moved to Florida “on a trial basis” in August 2020. They never went back. “It’s just a significantly better place for us as a family,” he said, noting Miami’s evolution into a vibrant tech and business hub. “We’ve all recruited others to come down.”