“We Don’t Belong Here Anymore” – Even Landlords Are Fleeing The Bay Area
by Tyler Durden
ZeroHedge.com
Mon, 02/26/2018
Peter Thiel and his band of libertarian-leaning Silicon Valley-types aren’t the only ones scrambling to leave the Bay Area: As we’ve noted time and time again, staggering economic inequality is a daily fact of life in the area surrounding San Francisco – largely because rapidly growing home valuations have left couples earning as much as $500,00 a year feeling like they’re being steadily priced out.
And while we’ve previously covered the exodus of renters to low-cost states like Texas, in a report published Saturday, the East Bay Times explores an even more troubling trend: Landlords are increasingly taking the cue from their tenants and joining in the exodus.
After all, with one in four US homes sold during 2017 going for more than $500,000 above their asking – particularly in hot real-estate markets like San Francisco, where buyers battling for the highest bid have begun relying on clauses that will automatically – and incrementally – raise their bids until they either emerge victorious, or reach a predetermined ceiling.
For at least the last nine months, the Bay Area has led the country in the number of departing residents, as everybody who isn’t a tech worker – including essential civil servants like police and fire fighters – begins to feel like a secondary servile class. One landlord said several of his tenants asked if they could move with him when he announced he was selling the building and departing for Colorado
Tony Hicks moved to San Jose in 1981, but he’s had enough.
Hicks told his 11 tenants he would soon place the three homes he owns on the market. He expected disappointment. Instead, most wanted to move with him to Colorado.
“It didn’t take them long,” Hicks said. “I was surprised.”
Hicks first bonded with many of his tenants over their shared appreciation for conservative politics in an environment that is openly hostile to views that don’t conform to the dominant neoliberal ideology.
“I’ve been thinking about this for a long time,” said Dan Harvey, 60, a retiree in one of Hicks’ rentals who is concerned about the traffic he fights on his Harley Davidson and the high cost of living. “A fresh start.”
Rising prices, high taxes and his suspicion that the next big earthquake is just a few tremors away convinced the retired engineer to put his South San Jose properties up for sale.
The groundswell to leave Silicon Valley — the place of fortunes, world-changing tech and $2,500 a-month-garage apartments — has been building. For at least the last nine months, the San Francisco metro area has led the nation in the number of residents moving out, according to a survey by online brokerage Redfin.
San Jose real estate agent Sandy Jamison has seen many long-time residents and natives leave the state recently. The lack of available housing, leading to some of the priciest real estate in the country, is driving many from the region, she said.
The Rest…HERE
