With Clark County reaching a population of 2.25 million, more and more people have been moving to Nevada.
The largest group of new Nevadans are coming from California. Look at any DMV around Las Vegas, and you'll see many license plates of people moving from the Golden State.
One of those new Nevadans is Scott Feidman, a musician and comedian who left Los Angeles because it was too expensive. He's planning to drive for Uber and Lyft while he figures out his next move in Las Vegas.
"Hopefully looking to settle into something permanent and really establish myself," he says.
He says the high taxes and cost of living and taxes were his main reasons for leaving California.
And he's not alone. The Bay Area is also experiencing a mass exodus, with so many people leaving that they're running out of U-Haul trucks.
At latest check, the estimate for a rental truck from San Francisco to Las Vegas is around $2,000. But going the other direction, it's only about $120.
But the influx of Californians is also causing the housing market in Las Vegas to become more expensive. "One of the biggest problems we have right now is supply and so can we see more buyers exit California and come to Las Vegas, that's gonna make it even harder to buy a home in Southern Nevada," says Chris Bishop, the president of the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors.
But Bishop says home builders are working fast to make up for that demand.
Here's a full list of cost comparisons between Las Vegas, the Bay Area, and Los Angeles:
Las Vegas:
- Average Home: $249,000
- Average Rent: $1,297
- Lowest gas price: $2.49
San Francisco / Bay Area:
- Average home: $923,000
- Average Rent: $3,404
- Lowest gas price: $3.03
Los Angeles:
- Average home: $636,000
- Average rent: $2,738
- Lowest gas price: $2.99
