Billionaires Flee West Coast for Florida as California’s 5% Wealth Tax Targets $100 Billion
Updated
Updated · Fortune · Aug 23
Billionaires Flee West Coast for Florida as California’s 5% Wealth Tax Targets $100 Billion
1 articles · Updated · Fortune · Aug 23
Summary
Larry Page and Sergey Brin left California before a Jan. 1 cutoff and bought Florida properties, joining Mark Zuckerberg, Howard Schultz, Jeff Bezos and others shifting wealth and homes south.
California’s proposed Billionaire Tax Act would impose a one-time 5% levy on net worth for qualifying residents, aiming to raise $100 billion from roughly 200 people for healthcare, education and food assistance.
Those departures could already dent the plan: Fortune estimated exits by Page, Brin, Travis Kalanick and Peter Thiel may strip about $29 billion from the tax base, nearly a quarter of the target.
Sergey Brin has donated $102 million to a PAC backing countermeasures that could block the tax even if voters approve it; a UC Berkeley poll showed likely voters split 48% to 41%.
Florida’s draw goes beyond politics—no state income or capital-gains tax and a booming luxury market, where Miami logged a record 361 home sales above $10 million in 2025.
With the 2026 wealth tax deadline passed, did California's bold levy raise billions, or just trigger a massive billionaire exodus to Florida?
As tech titans pour billions into Miami properties, will this unprecedented wealth migration permanently reshape Florida's economy and housing market?
Beyond avoiding taxes, what hidden motives are driving the world's richest elites to consolidate their empires in heavily guarded South Florida enclaves?