SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – San Diego County can be a desirable place to live for some people.
But Lorin Guerrero is concerned about her son relocating from Las Cruces, New Mexico.
“Of course, the first thing I'm worried about is the cost of living. I was worried about where he would live,” Guerrero said. “He pays more than $2,000 a month for a studio apartment.”
As we have previously reported, cost of living and affordable housing have always been major hurdles for county residents.
“In New Mexico and West Texas, you can probably get a comfortable three-bedroom, two-bathroom home for $2,000 or more,” Guerrero says.
San Diego County has seen a significant drop in net domestic immigration, according to newly released census data.
It is the difference between the number of people moving to a certain area and the number of people moving out.
In 2023, the county had nearly 31,000 more people moving out than moving in, nearly double the number from the previous year.
Guerrero told ABC 10News that her neighbors on her street moved from San Diego County about a year ago.
“For them, being able to afford a home in their area is more cost-effective than living in San Diego,” Guerrero said. “Cost of living, retirement benefits, slow pace.”
ABC 10News spoke with the president of United Way of San Diego County about what he's seeing on the ground locally.
“Here in San Diego County, 36% of our residents can barely make enough money to survive here. So we want people to be able to do more, have more money, and have more… It's no wonder they're looking for a place to live in other places that offer the same, said Nancy Sasaki, president and CEO of United Way of San Diego County.
Sasaki said hopeful conversations are taking place in the education community to prepare students for locally in-demand jobs and keep them in the county.
“So how do we work with school districts, community colleges and universities to make sure our curriculum is meeting the needs of people to stay here? So those conversations. There’s a lot of work going on,” Sasaki said.