In a recent news article from the Record Searchlight in Redding, it appears that a fair number
of Californians from the north state are moving out, but the reasons are heartbreaking.

Michael Joost, who manages the Budget Truck Rental Center on
Churn Creek Road in Redding, said many who have lost their jobs,
also have lost their homes to foreclosure, or both, and they are
leaving Shasta County. “They are leaving the state and going back
to family in different states,” said Joost, whose business is up about
20 percent compared with last year. “A lot of people are moving back
in with their parents or in-laws.”

Justin Moore, who owns the Two Men and a Truck franchise in the
Redding-Chico area, said his interstate business is up. However,
not many are moving to the north state. “I have seen a 100
percent increase for interstate requests this year,” Moore said.
“They are going out of California, all of them.” Most are moving to
Oregon, Moore said, to cities like Bandon, Coos Bay, Grants Pass
or Medford. “A lot of them have gone through a foreclosure here
or have lost a job, so what they are doing is moving” back to
where they came from, Moore said. “Picture yourself in that
situation. If that were happening to you, your mind-set would be to
start over.”

Of interest, the cities in Southern Oregon are not in much better economic shape than those
in Northern California. In our attempt to contact economic developers in Shasta County, we
could not find any one, because they either have been laid-off or have quit. 

 

Tim Johnson
tjohnson@californiabusinessminute.com