Poll: 59% of LA voters have considered relocating because of high housing costs

More than half, or 56 percent, of Los Angeles County voters say that the cost of housing here is so high that they have considered relocating, reports the Sacramento Bee.

The findings come from a new statewide poll conducted by UC Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies. They’re not hard to believe, considering home prices in LA County are setting new highs month after month and rents are on the rise, too.

The results aren’t isolated to LA County, but instead reflect “broad concerns Californians have over the soaring cost of living,” says the Bee.

“People are being forced to consider moving because of the rising cost of housing— that’s pretty prevalent all over the state,” poll director Mark DiCamillo tells the Bee.

In every region of the state included in the poll, more than 50 percent of respondents said they had considered moving elsewhere, either to another part of California or out of state, as a result of high housing costs.

High housing costs likely influenced respondents’ attitudes toward rent control, which was highly popular in the polls. Across the state 60 percent of voters supported rent control laws, and in areas where rents have been especially high, like LA County and the Bay area, rent control had the support of 68 and 63 percent of voters.

The timely poll comes just as the state Assembly’s passed a suite of affordable housing bills aimed squarely at creating more units and finding money for affordable housing.

• California exodus? Poll finds voters consider moving due to sky-high housing costs [Sacramento Bee]
• California affordable housing bills clear Assembly [Curbed SF]