Only about 64 percent of those born in Massachusetts still live in the state. (Boston: real estate)

[baystater]

At a loss - The Boston Globe

Only about 64 percent of those born in Massachusetts still live in the state, according to a report by Northeastern University's Center for Labor Market Studies, which says it has compiled the most comprehensive data so far about the loss of state residents.

More than 2.2 million natives of Massachusetts now live elsewhere in the country, while 1.2 million people from other states live here. Massachusetts is the country's ninth worst in attracting residents from other states, the study shows. It ranked 48th in terms of losing residents to other states

This makes me sad.
While I'm currently forced to live in NJ because of my GF's government job. I so want to desperately return to my people, my culture, and my home (though I do come up all the time.) What really bothered me about this article is that there are some of those who left the state that didn't want to do so but just can't make it back. I do truly hope that the state can pull itself together to make the state a better more desirable place for her native Sons and Daughter that wish to stay/return and raise or be with there families.

[in_newengland]

It makes me sad too. People have to move south to be able to survive because it's so expensive here. I'm stuck in a teeny apartment but I just can't bear to leave my home state. I don't even think I'd fit in anywhere else and I'd miss everything that Massachusetts has to offer in terms of beaches, pretty towns, nice people, culture, history -- it goes on and on.

With the number of foreclosures maybe there's hope at last for honest hard working people who can't even dream of owning their own home. Maybe people can come back again.

[miu]

I was born in Manhattan and moved to MA when I was in 4th grade. I've been happily here ever since. About 15 years ago, the rest of my family moved to CA. I refused to go as I greatly prefer living in the New England area. However, there are a lot of places in the US that appeal to me aesthetically to live at. I don't see what's wrong with 36% of MA born people leaving the state is seen as bad.

My former in-laws are people that have lived in MA all their lives. First Allston, then Medford. I actually feel sorry for them that they don't get out of the area to explore the world more. When my former MIL flew to CA to my sisters' weddings, it was the first time she'd ever even been on an airplane!

[Crematia]

Who would want to live here? In the smog, with the traffic, with the rude people, astronomical housing prices, it's either summer or winter (fall and spring seem more non-existent every year), with no in between...the list goes on. Whoopty do, we have good colleges and hospitals, for the working class folk MA generally stinks.

My great grandparents came off the boats from Ireland and Russia and wound up in MA, and my extended family stayed here and was generally miserable. From my grand parents, my parents, to me and my sister, none of us chose to live here, we were all born here and were dumb enough to stay put. Same goes for my husband, his family is the same way. The snow and ridiculous cost of living won, we're glad to be leaving, the whole lot of us are headed west

[miu]

Originally Posted by Crematia

Who would want to live here? In the smog, with the traffic, with the rude people, astronomical housing prices, it's either summer or winter (fall and spring seem more non-existent every year), with no in between...the list goes on. Whoopty do, we have good colleges and hospitals, for the working class folk MA generally stinks.

My great grandparents came off the boats from Ireland and Russia and wound up in MA, and my extended family stayed here and was generally miserable. From my grand parents, my parents, to me and my sister, none of us chose to live here, we were all born here and were dumb enough to stay put. Same goes for my husband, his family is the same way. The snow and ridiculous cost of living won, we're glad to be leaving, the whole lot of us are headed west

So hurry up and leave already! I wish that there were a lot less people living in MA! I'd love for the roads to be emptier and the housing prices to go down. lol

[kharing]

I left Boston 10 years ago because it was cold, too expensive and I got sick of riding the T to work. Now? I miss New England but it's still too darn cold!!! I am headed back east - just not that far up north. Thinking Mid-Atlantic this time. Massachusetts is a great state and I am proud to have lived there a majority of my life. Of course, it took me ten years to say that.

[goyguy]

Originally Posted by Crematia

Who would want to live here? In the smog, with the traffic, with the rude people, astronomical housing prices, it's either summer or winter (fall and spring seem more non-existent every year), with no in between...the list goes on. Whoopty do, we have good colleges and hospitals, for the working class folk MA generally stinks.

My great grandparents came off the boats from Ireland and Russia and wound up in MA, and my extended family stayed here and was generally miserable. From my grand parents, my parents, to me and my sister, none of us chose to live here, we were all born here and were dumb enough to stay put. Same goes for my husband, his family is the same way. The snow and ridiculous cost of living won, we're glad to be leaving, the whole lot of us are headed west

Good riddance, one less flock of whiners. Last I checked, the worst smog in the country was in SoCal, Phoenix, Denver, and Houston. And most of the significant urban sprawl problems in this country are in those places and other "destinations" in the Sun Belt. Enjoy your new cookiecutter dream house, and the $4/gallon gas you'll be using lots of from not being able to walk anywhere except the neighbors' - who incidentally will probably have fences all around their property to add another layer of "privacy" to the gated community you could well be living in. I bet you'll like having more Wal-Marts to shop at too. Just curious, is the development one that acres of desert had to be torn up for? Or maybe it's one with mountain views that some rancher was persuaded to sell his land, that'd been in his family for generations, to an aggressive builder for. No matter. Don't let the screen door hit you on the way out.

Sorry for getting personal in any way with that dig, but seriously, MA is better off without these folks who can do nothing but bemoan the weather conditions and cast everything else in a negative light while they're at it. Life is what you make of it. Don't like "m-ssholes" on the highways? Use the T. Sure, the buses and trains are delayed sometimes. So what? They still roll right by all the people stewing in backups on 93, the Pike, etc. Hate the climate? Wait a minute. (lol) Tornadoes are tearing up the Midwest, right on schedule. California is on fire, again right on schedule, with mudslides to inevitably follow. Every coastal state from Texas to Virginia has hurricanes to look forward to soon. And the list goes on and on. Mother Nature lets us off easy.

I guess I'm a typical transplant in that I'm happy with where I wound up. The "survivor humor" of many Bay Staters fits well with my personality. Every day I gloat about not owning "wheels" nor having to. Being in a gentrifying and "hot" area has its drawbacks, what with the new arrivals' far more often than not being so self-absorbed as to not have the ability to do much more than say hello - if that - when passing on the street despite recognizing you. No loss. History shows that when their graduate work is finished or a new addition to the household maxes out their living space, they make tracks for suburbia or - better yet - out of state anyway. Most of the people in my neighborhood are cordial at worst and often far better than that. I crack up every time I hear a disgruntled New Englander go on and on about how much friendlier and kinder "everybody" in the Midwest and down South is. Riiiiiiiight! They're just checking you out behind those smiling eyes and sugar-coating the knife they're about to plunge into your back. If somebody in Boston doesn't like you, for the right or wrong reasons, it'll be made abundantly clear right off the bat. It takes all kinds to make a world, and those kinds exist throughout the world. But people present themselves with more sincerity 'round these parts; some call it "rudeness" or "being too brutally frank" but I'll take that over phony niceness any day of the week.

What I don't get is why any supposed mass (Mass.) exodus, exaggerated "to sell papers" of course, is a bad thing. The situation of being priced out of housing is at long last correcting, so that more people having a tough go of it can stay here if they prefer. That leaves the bitching and moaning "Crematia" types, and the rootless and apathetic yuppies and would-be yuppies, who add nothing positive to where they make their homes. Let them leave. Who needs 'em?

[TomDot]

Could not agree more goyguy. There was a book out several years back called cartographies of danger. It mapped the U.S. based on all dangers natural and social (crime).
The safest state in the U.S. was Connecticut with Massachusetts coming in at number 2.
I love it here as does my wife, who is from Michigan. She doesn't want to live anywhere else despite two thirds of her family currently residing in California.
BTW: It is a lovely mid-spring morning here in Dorchester.

[TomDot]

Originally Posted by Crematia

Who would want to live here? In the smog, with the traffic, with the rude people, astronomical housing prices, it's either summer or winter (fall and spring seem more non-existent every year), with no in between...the list goes on. Whoopty do, we have good colleges and hospitals, for the working class folk MA generally stinks.

My great grandparents came off the boats from Ireland and Russia and wound up in MA, and my extended family stayed here and was generally miserable. From my grand parents, my parents, to me and my sister, none of us chose to live here, we were all born here and were dumb enough to stay put. Same goes for my husband, his family is the same way. The snow and ridiculous cost of living won, we're glad to be leaving, the whole lot of us are headed west

Sounds like a pretty stupid gene pool to me.

[twiggy]

Originally Posted by Crematia

Who would want to live here? In the smog, with the traffic, with the rude people, astronomical housing prices, it's either summer or winter (fall and spring seem more non-existent every year), with no in between...the list goes on. Whoopty do, we have good colleges and hospitals, for the working class folk MA generally stinks.

My great grandparents came off the boats from Ireland and Russia and wound up in MA, and my extended family stayed here and was generally miserable. From my grand parents, my parents, to me and my sister, none of us chose to live here, we were all born here and were dumb enough to stay put. Same goes for my husband, his family is the same way. The snow and ridiculous cost of living won, we're glad to be leaving, the whole lot of us are headed west

Be careful what you wish for sweetie. A lot of people head out west only to find a bad economy, this is happening everywhere. I'm from the land where everyone goes to escape cost and snow. People stay an average of 3 to 5 years before realizing their mistake. Unfortunately they cannot get out of here and get stuck finically. You don't make near the money you do back east, the housing slump has hit the hardest here with way more foreclosures than MA. And if you don't have kids, I guess the lack of education won't bother you but the pollution and the endless summers might. Speaking of a lack of natives, nobody who lives in Phoenix is from here. And native here means Indian. So you'll need a new lingo. lol Crime is very high here too. It's the 5th largest city, with no city, just sprawl. Visit first before you leave the culture you can call your own. Before you leave the clean air you breath, and before you leave those well educated people, before you leave a place you can walk down the street, without fear and distance. A car will be your best friend here. Get a good one. You will be entering a hispanic culture, this is their history. It's interesting and cool to see, you have to love a fiesta, and a siesta, and good mexican food. There is a down side to not belonging to this history. You feel it. The state is very divided right now, especially with the new immigrant laws. Being a border state has it's drawbacks. With the tensions right now you can't even visit Mexico anymore without worrying about it. A lot of hispanics don't like anyone else and are on guard a lot. I can understand why but it's still an issue. I have lived here a long time and still feel back east is my home. All the box stores here, no small business make it in these strip malls. It's all Target and Walmart (one of our biggest employers, second to petsmart). And those are the jobs you'll get too. A friend who graduated from college only to go on a become a cashier, because it pays more, is looking for a way to make a living with her degree. But no luck here. Big business over rides education out here. They hire for most of the few high paying positions from somewhere else and leave the low paying jobs open for zonies. If you're not doing well in MA, then you might like it out here. Just be aware of the "grass is not always greener" rule. Do your research. Only a very small percentage of people end up staying here, 65% of MA still living there is triple that of AZ. It's a very transient state. Everyone is from somewhere else. Go on our forum. Plus, the critters and plants we have are a lot meaner out here. lol They have to be to survive without water and food. All are plants have spikes and needles and thorns on them. So do our insects. The mosquitos are not a large but we get just as much west Nile and other things from them. Plus, bark scorpions, tarantulas, killer bee's, roaches the size of your fist, and 2 allergy seasons, spring and fall. Be sure you're willing to take all of this when you give up your snow. Everything is a trade off. I know that. I know I won't like everything in MA, but I'm trading bad education, pollution, crime, scary bugs, dirt, and excessive heat for the snow. Unless you live in an outlying area, which is an hour into town, with a lot of rattle snakes and scorps, you'll still pay 280,000 to 600,000 for a house. I've compared the real estate and if you don't live in boston, it's only a little cheaper out here to live by everything you need. You can get a new build but you'll never be able to sell it. So be sure this is what you want. Then enjoy, because we definitely don't have any snow to shovel. Just dirt. lol Oh, and what is public transportation? We don't have that here. lol A lot of people dream of a "T". We break the pollution record every year because of the cars on the road. Just go to our forum and compare, it's a world of difference in unhappy people.