Leaving California: the short answer
Moving away does not end your tax ties to California on the day the truck leaves. Three rules matter most:
- Residency. California taxes residents on all income. You stop being a resident when you leave for other than a temporary or transitory purpose, judged by where your closest connections are (FTB Publication 1031).
- Your California home. Gain on California real estate and rent from it are California-source income, taxable even after you leave.
- Timing a sale. The $250,000 or $500,000 home sale exclusion needs two years of use in the five years before the sale, so you have about three years after moving out to sell and keep it.
Property tax follows the property, not you: keeping the home does not reset its Prop 13 value, but you lose the homeowners' exemption once it is no longer your main home.
Where are Californians moving? Census data for 2024
Top destination states for people leaving California
The table uses the Census Bureau's 2024 state-to-state migration flows (ACS one-year estimates, people one year and older). Net is people moving from California minus people moving the other way.
| State | Moved from California | Moved to California | Net loss to that state |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 77,161 | 45,447 | 31,714 |
| Nevada | 53,289 | 21,133 | 32,156 |
| Arizona | 52,383 | 28,174 | 24,209 |
| Washington | 43,938 | 26,956 | 16,982 |
| Florida | 36,194 | 15,988 | 20,206 |
| Oregon | 31,500 | 17,954 | 13,546 |
| New York | 31,367 | 24,927 | 6,440 |
| Virginia | 20,180 | 18,100 | 2,080 |
| Colorado | 19,717 | 15,781 | 3,936 |
| Tennessee | 19,670 | 7,972 | 11,698 |
| North Carolina | 18,428 | 8,873 | 9,555 |
| Idaho | 15,385 | 6,509 | 8,876 |
How precise the Census migration numbers are
These are survey estimates with wide margins. The Census Bureau's 90% margin of error is about plus or minus 9,059 for California to Texas and about 6,900 for Nevada and Arizona, so Nevada's larger net loss than Texas is within the error range. Treat the order of the top three as a near tie.
Comparing destination states
Our side-by-side guides compare taxes, home values, insurance and climate: California vs Texas, California vs Nevada, California vs Arizona and California vs Florida.
California's population and domestic migration in 2025
State population on January 1, 2026
The California Department of Finance estimated the state's population at 39,593,000 on January 1, 2026, down 0.14%, or about 54,000 people, from a year earlier. It was the first annual decline after three years of growth. The department attributed the dip mainly to a drop in legal international migration, from 248,400 in 2024 to 126,400 in 2025.
Net domestic out-migration
The same report put net domestic out-migration, people leaving for other states minus those arriving, at 288,600 in 2025. Natural increase (births minus deaths) added 108,200.
Counties that grew and shrank
Seventeen counties grew, mostly in the Central Valley and the Inland Empire. Placer County grew fastest at 1.39%, followed by Yuba (1.24%), San Benito (0.69%), Madera (0.68%), San Joaquin (0.63%) and Sacramento (0.58%). Los Angeles County lost 64,000 people, which the department linked to the Eaton and Palisades wildfires, moves to the Inland Empire and deportations.
California tax residency rules when you leave
Who counts as a California resident
The FTB treats you as a resident if you are in California for other than a temporary or transitory purpose, or if you are domiciled in California and are away only for a temporary or transitory purpose. You are presumed to be a resident in any year you spend more than nine months in the state. Residents are taxed on income from all sources; nonresidents only on California-source income.
Closest connections: the factors the FTB weighs
Publication 1031 says you are a resident of the place where you have the closest connections, and that the strength of the ties matters more than their number. The factors include where your spouse and children live, where you are registered to vote, your driver's license and vehicle registration, the location of your bank accounts, doctors, accountants and attorneys, your social and professional ties, and the location of your real property. Moving these ties promptly and keeping records helps show when you left.
The 546-day safe harbor for work contracts
If you leave under an employment-related contract for at least 546 consecutive days, you are treated as a nonresident, provided intangible income stays under $200,000 a year and the main purpose is not to avoid tax. Return visits totaling 45 days or less in a tax year are treated as temporary. Most people who simply move for a new life do not use this rule; their status depends on the facts.
Part-year returns and Form 540NR
In the year you move, you file as a part-year resident on Form 540NR. You owe California tax on all income while a resident and on California-source income after. Nonresidents are not taxed by California on pensions received after December 31, 1995.
Your California home: sell, keep or rent
Selling before or after you move
The home sale exclusion requires two years of ownership and use as your main home in the five years before the sale. If you lived in the home until you left, you can usually sell within about three years and keep the exclusion. California still taxes any gain above the exclusion, because gain on California real estate is California-source income for nonresidents. See our capital gains guide.
Real estate withholding for out-of-state sellers
Escrow withholds 3 1/3% of the sales price for the FTB unless you certify an exemption on Form 593. FTB Publication 1016 says nonresident individuals are subject to withholding, and lists the principal residence test as a full exemption. If you rented the home after leaving and no longer qualify, you can elect withholding on the estimated gain instead of the full price.
Keeping the home as a rental
Renting out your former home does not change its Prop 13 assessed value, which changes on a change in ownership or new construction. But it is no longer your main home, so tell the assessor to end the $7,000 homeowners' exemption; the BOE says December 10 is the last day to terminate it without penalty. Rent is California-source income, so you file a California nonresident return each year. After three years as a rental, the home sale exclusion is gone.
Prop 19 only works inside California
Owners 55 and older can carry their property tax base to a replacement home only within California. Moving out of state forfeits that option. Our Prop 19 guide explains the rules if you are weighing a move within the state instead.
Worked example: a couple moving to Nevada
Example: selling the California home after the move
A married couple lived in their Sacramento County home for 12 years and moved to Nevada in June 2026. They sell the home in March 2027. They bought it for $300,000, added $40,000 of improvements and sell for $560,000 with $35,000 of selling costs.
| Step | Math | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Amount realized | $560,000 - $35,000 | $525,000 |
| Basis | $300,000 + $40,000 | $340,000 |
| Gain | $525,000 - $340,000 | $185,000 |
| Exclusion (lived there 2 of last 5 years) | up to $500,000 | $185,000 excluded |
| Taxable gain | $0 |
They certify the principal residence exemption on Form 593, so escrow withholds nothing. If instead they had rented the home until 2030, the exclusion would be gone, the whole gain plus depreciation would be California-source income, and escrow would withhold unless they elected the gain-based method.
Example: comparing a move within California
For owners priced out of the coast, moving inland is the other option. Zillow's typical home value in September 2026 was $926,979 in San Diego County against $602,790 in Riverside County, and $1,562,682 in Santa Clara County against $521,128 in Sacramento County. Owners 55 and older who stay in California can also keep their Prop 13 base under Prop 19.
Deadlines and a leaving-California checklist
- Before you list: confirm your two-of-five-year dates for the exclusion and gather improvement records.
- Move day: get the new state's driver's license, register vehicles and register to vote there; close or move local accounts and professionals.
- By December 10: end the homeowners' exemption on a home you no longer live in.
- At closing: complete Form 593 with the right exemption or withholding method.
- By April 15: file Form 540NR for the part-year, then every year you have California-source income.
- Within three years of moving out: sell, if you want to keep the home sale exclusion.
Common mistakes when leaving California
- Keeping California ties. A California driver's license, voter registration and doctors make it harder to prove you left.
- Assuming a sale after moving is untaxed. Gain on California property stays taxable by California.
- Renting the home too long. The exclusion lapses about three years after you move out.
- Leaving the homeowners' exemption on. The BOE says notice must reach the assessor by December 10 to end it without penalty.
- Selling first, comparing later. If you are 55 or older, check whether Prop 19 makes a move within California cheaper.