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nullc

How does that cause a population decrease?

"It's too expensive, no one lives there anymore"?

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People leaving the city for less expensive areas

This is about the U.S. as a whole tho. I don’t think people are leaving the U.S. entirely

There is a table that shows the cities with biggest population loss, which is what I am referencing.

That explains migration within a country which doesn’t change population counts. Unless you’re claiming that white people are moving out of America because it’s too expensive and simultaneously Hispanics are moving into a higher COL area (even if not high COL cities, America as a whole is going to be higher COL than Latin America).

Based on the news I’ve been following, a more likely explanation is that Biden’s immigration policy has been more welcoming on the southern border at the same time as Latin America destabilizing quite a bit politically and generating a lot of refugee migration.

I just don’t see how high COL or lack of housing being built explains the population growth being dominated by Hispanics.

that is sort of my entire point, pointing to California’s massive population loss is completely irrelevant data for the topic of this article. I don’t have the data in front of me, but I would be willing to bet a large percentage of that is not due to birth rates and is due to emigration.

Sure, but surely you agree that migration within a country and between countries are massively different undertakings and that things that impact one are less likely to impact the other?

And when they leave, their home remains empty?

The number of people per household has been declining for fifty years, so if you don't build homes then you lose people instead.

Where are those people going and why are Hispanics moving in?

I don't think housing costs explain the short-term changes described in this article. I am only answering the question of how housing costs lead to population decreases.

Wouldn’t those still generally be local not national decreases?

If there’s contrary research showing housing prices specifically lead to emigration I’d love to learn more. It’s not representative of any narratives I’ve heard in media or in my personal life.

I could see how a higher COL and needing to work crazy hours is seeing more families delay children and/or having fewer children. But that’s a little more general than “expensive housing” and not something I’ve heard as even a thing for America expats, except those nearing retirement age. So maybe it could be Boomers choosing to retire abroad which could explain it but I haven’t seen this en masse in enough ways to make me believe it could be realistic.

Kids need bedrooms of their own. Young couples take this into account when managing contraception.

Not really. That's a luxury.

Why is this being downvoted? Do you all not know people whose kids are in the same room? Ours are. Someone we know has 4 kids in a 2 BR apartment, those kids are great.

Neither of the anecdotes you've provided imply that children having their own bedroom is a luxury. Only that the opposite does happen, and isn't necessarily bad for the children in every case. There is a wide space between those, and you should pay respect to the differences between different people.

As for an explanation regarding the parent comment: Their use of the word "luxury" in this context antagonizes people by implying their standards are too high or they're spoiled or whatever, when really it's a perfectly reasonable thing to prioritize - and a perfectly reasonable thing not to prioritize. I.e. they have introduced team A vs team B negativity where it doesn't need to exist.

If you compare how humans have lived prior to this century, children having their own room is a recent development and indeed a luxury. Having your own private space is great, but not necessary. Hence, a luxury.

Exactly what I meant.

Luxury means "something expensive which is pleasant to have but is not really necessary". My anecdotes were trying to show that they're not really necessary, and the sibling comment further explained that individual bedrooms is a relatively recent phenomenon for the majority.

It's fine to prioritize individual bedrooms if that's important to them for some reason, but it's important to keep a realistic view of things, too. When things become common, then people sometimes forget that the less expensive option is totally acceptable, and means fewer years spent needing to work, more financial freedom, lower financial stress, etc.

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