These days, discussions about LA can get a bit complicated.

On the positive side, the weather here is fantastic. You hardly need to pull out a winter coat even in mid-winter, and with the ocean and mountains nearby, it's a great place to live.

For Koreans, there's no struggle with food either.

If you want seolleongtang, you can go to the seolleongtang restaurant on Wilshire, and if you're craving sundae-guk, there's a sundae-guk place on Western.

But why are people still moving to Texas, Arizona, and Nevada from such a great place?

Why is the LA economy declining, and why are public schools closing due to a lack of students?

I believe it all comes down to money.

It's not unreasonable to say that residents are fed up with taxes and various costs.

Looking at LA's budget for 2026-27, property tax revenue is about $3.1 billion, business tax is about $900 million, and sales tax is about $680 million.

Taxes are necessary to run a city. You need to pay police salaries, operate fire departments, and quickly fill potholes on the streets.

However, from the perspective of those who pay, the story changes.

If you own a home, you pay property tax. When you buy something, sales tax is added. If you run a business, business tax follows.

On top of that, permits, licenses, various regulations, and fees start piling up.

Koreans really dislike this kind of thing.

"What do you mean by money that I don't have to pay?" This question comes up.

California's personal income tax has a top rate of 12.3%.

Of course, not everyone pays 12.3%. It's a progressive tax rate that applies to high-income brackets.

Still, for those making a lot of money, the 0% personal state income tax in Texas is hard to ignore.

That doesn't mean Texas is a tax-free paradise, though.

Try buying a house in Texas. Property taxes are quite high.

However, because home prices are lower, the amount you pay is now similar to LA's property tax.

So, people are starting to do the math.

"Do I really have to live in California while paying this much?"

In fact, there was a net outflow of about 230,000 people in 2024-25.

The population of LA County also decreased from about 9.75 million in 2024 to about 9.7 million in 2025.

In contrast, major urban counties in Texas and Arizona grew significantly during the same period.

Harris County in Texas increased from about 5 million to around 5.05 million, and Maricopa County, home to Phoenix, grew from about 4.65 million to around 4.69 million.

However, saying that "LA residents all fled to Texas because of taxes" is not entirely accurate.

Some people move for housing costs, some for jobs, and some retire and leave.

But when people are leaving and businesses start calculating costs, if the government tries to solve the revenue shortage with more taxes and fees, problems arise.

Let's say I'm a restaurant owner.

If 100 customers used to come and now only 80 do,

and the owner comes out of the kitchen and says,

"Since customers are down, let's raise the price of seolleongtang from $18 to $22."

No, owner.

Now is not the time to change the price; you need to find out why customers aren't coming.

LA is not in a financially comfortable situation either.

During the 2026 budget process, a budget shortfall of hundreds of millions of dollars was discussed. So, the government has its reasons for needing to collect taxes.

But taxes are quite peculiar.

Raising tax rates doesn't guarantee that revenue will keep increasing forever. People and businesses are not like trees; they don't just root themselves in one place.

Businesses have legs, wealthy individuals have plane tickets, and the middle class has U-Hauls.

Texas and Arizona are not paradises either.

Texas has burdensome property taxes, and in the summer, stepping outside feels like someone is blowing a hairdryer in your face.

Arizona is even worse. In Phoenix during the summer, you hesitate to touch the car door handle.

Yet, people are still moving, which ultimately means the calculations have changed.

What LA should really worry about is not just the number of a few thousand people leaving.

It's the moment when people's thoughts shift from "I'll live here because it's LA, even if it's expensive" to "Why am I putting up with this for that money?"

Korean business owners understand this very well.

Regular customers don't come to our store for a lifetime.

If you keep raising prices and the service declines, even a 20-year regular might suddenly stop coming and go to the cheaper place next door.

Is a city any different?

You should never think of tax-paying residents and businesses as eternal regulars.

Before you keep handing out bills, you need to ask why customers are walking out the door.

LA still has a lot of great things. That's what makes it even more regrettable.

A city that has it all is making people think, "Should I really live here?" instead of "I should live here."