Restaurant die-off is first course of California’s $15 minimum wage

[danielpalos]

Our current president wants to cut foodstamps.

Which is a great thing, is it not?

No, it isn't; cutting the drug war by executive order in five minutes or less, would be a great thing.

 

[Wry Catcher]

I haven't notice a mass exodus from CA. Every month our home appreciates, and homes marketed at over 7 figures in my zip code are routinely sold for more than the asking price.

Every day we get notices in the mall from realators asking us to list our home, the market here is hot and our equity continues to grow.

You must be young because I remember at least two in the past 40 years. The last one was after the Cold War ended. Both Colorado and Texas have benefited from businesses and employers fleeing the PRC.

Californians Moving to Texas Hits Highest Level in Nine Years



BY: Ali Meyer
March 31, 2016 3:15 pm

The number of Californians leaving the state and moving to Texas is at its highest level in nearly a decade, according to data from the Internal Revenue Service.

According to IRS migration data, which uses individual income tax returns to record year-to-year address changes, over 250,000 California residents moved out of the state between 2013 and 2014, the latest period for which data was available. The tax returns reported more than $21 billion in adjusted gross income to the IRS.

Of the returns, 33,626 reported address changes from California to Texas, which has been the top destination for individuals leaving California since 2007. Californians who moved to Texas between 2013 and 2014 reported $2.19 billion in adjusted gross income.

The number of returns showing address changes from California to Texas hasn’t been this high since the period 2006-07. During that period, 34,078 returns were filed showing address changes to Texas.

Fewer Texans moved to California during the 2013-14 period. The IRS reported 21,391 returns with address changes from Texas to California. The returns reported $1.56 billion in adjusted gross income.

"California’s taxes and regulations are crushing businesses, and there are more opportunities in Texas for people to start new companies, get good jobs, and create better lives for their families," said Nathan Nascimento, the director of state initiatives at Freedom Partners. "When tax and regulatory climates are bad, people will move to better economic environments—this phenomenon isn’t a mystery, it’s how marketplaces work. Not only should other state governments take note of this, but so should the federal government."

According to Tom Gray of the Manhattan Institute, people may be leaving California for the employment opportunities, tax breaks, or less crowded living arrangements that other states offer.

"States with low unemployment rates, such as Texas, are drawing people from California, whose rate is above the national average," Gray wrote. "Taxation also appears to be a factor, especially as it contributes to the business climate and, in turn, jobs."

"Most of the destination states favored by Californians have lower taxes," Gray wrote. "States that have gained the most at California’s expense are rated as having better business climates. The data suggest that may cost drivers—taxes, regulations, the high price of housing and commercial real estate, costly electricity, union power, and high labor costs—are prompting businesses to locate outside California, thus helping to drive the exodus."

California’s skyrocketing housing costs, taxes prompt exodus of residents – The Mercury News
Living in San Jose, Kathleen Eaton seemingly had it all: a well-paying job, a home in a gated community, even the Bay Area’s temperate weather.

But enduring a daily grind that made her feel like a “gerbil on a wheel,” Eaton reached her limit.

Skyrocketing costs for housing, food and gasoline, along with the area’s insufferable gridlock, prompted the four-decade Bay Area resident to seek greener pastures — 2,000 miles away in Ohio.

“It was a struggle in California,” Eaton said. “It was a very difficult place to live. … It’s a vicious circle.”

Eaton is far from alone.

A growing number of Bay Area residents — besieged by home prices, worsening traffic, high taxes and a generally more expensive cost of living — believe life would be better just about anywhere else but here.

During the 12 months ending June 30, the number of people leaving California for another state exceeded by 61,100 the number who moved here from elsewhere in the U.S., according to state Finance Department statistics. The so-called “net outward migration” was the largest since 2011, when 63,300 more people fled California than entered.

“The main factors are housing costs in many parts of the state, including coastal regions of California such as the Bay Area,” said Dan Hamilton, director of economics with the Economic Forecasting Center at California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks.

“California has seen negative outward migration to other states for 22 of the last 25 years.”

A recent poll revealed that an unsettling sense of yearning has descended on people in the Bay Area: About one-third of those surveyed by the Bay Area Council say they would like to exit the nine-county region sometime soon.

“They are tired of the expense of living here. They are tired of the state of California and the endless taxes here,” said Scott McElfresh, a certified moving consultant. “People are getting soaked every time they turn around.”

The area’s sizzling job market and robust economy have created a domino effect: income spikes for highly trained workers, more people packing the area’s roads, red-hot demand for housing.

What’s more, the technology boom has unleashed a hiring spree that has intensified the desire for homes anywhere near the job hubs of Santa Clara County, the East Bay and San Francisco. The South Bay job market has hit an all-time high after a 5,800-position surge in May, fueling an overall gain of 3,400 jobs for the Bay Area, according to a state labor report released Friday.

The region’s soaring housing prices are a key factor driving dissatisfied residents toward the exit door. Several people who have departed, or soon will leave, say they potentially could have hundreds of thousands of dollars left over even after buying a house in their new locations.

“They’re taking advantage of the housing bubble right now,” McElfresh said. “The majority of the people we are seeing are moving to states that don’t have state income taxes.”

Thomas Norman, of San Francisco, said he and his wife, Patricia, are seriously considering leaving the Bay Area. They have actively scouted for houses in the Rocky Mountains region, including a trip to Colorado to look for prospective homes.

“The inconvenience of the Bay Area is a major factor,” said Thomas Norman, a lifelong Bay Area resident burdened by a two-hour round-trip commute to an East Bay optometry practice. “The traffic is very bad. It is becoming more congested with all the housing that is being added here.”

Eaton, who left the South Bay to relocate near Dayton, Ohio, cited the high cost of living as a major factor driving her decision. The struggle to make ends meet became too much.

“You can’t get ahead,” Eaton said. “It’s more than the cost of living; it’s the high taxes.”

Eaton and her sister had a $724,000 house in The Villages in South San Jose that they sold before moving to Ohio. Their mortgage payments were $2,200 a month, plus $1,000 for association fees in the gated community. They were able to pay $300,000 in cash for their new home in Ohio.

Priya Govindarajan, a San Francisco resident, is planning to leave the Bay Area at the end of June and head with her husband, Ajay Patel, to North Carolina.

Govindarajan, who works in the consumer packaged goods industry, and her husband, who is in the medical profession, determined that their wages aren’t going far enough to cover their living expenses.

Living in UC San Francisco housing, the couple pays $2,100 a month in rent. And they have to cough up $1,900 a month for child care.

“My husband’s salary would be in the six figures, but six figures is not enough to cover the rent, day care (and) food prices,” Govindarajan said. “It all starts to add up.”

Govindarajan said she figures they can put down 20 percent on a nice house in North Carolina and have a monthly payment of $1,800 — which would include the mortgage, property taxes and insurance.

“I get why people want to live in the Bay Area, I really do,” Govindarajan said. “But it is so difficult to live here, especially for people coming here for the first time.”

Some experts believe the boom in the Bay Area has exacerbated the problem of income inequality and the resentment that can accompany that economic reality.

“There is a declining middle class in the Bay Area,” said Christopher Hoene, executive director of the California Budget & Policy Center, a research group that recently completed a study about income inequality in Silicon Valley. “Widening income inequality can create polarization socially and economically.”

In 1989, the middle class accounted for 56 percent of all households in Silicon Valley, but by 2013, that share had slipped to 45.7 percent, the study found.

“The region’s middle class has shrunk, while the numbers of lower-income and higher-income households has grown,” the report stated. Silicon Valley, for the purposes of the study, consists of Santa Clara County, San Mateo County and San Francisco.

Lower-income residents accounted for 30.3 percent of Silicon Valley’s households in 1989, and that number grew to 34.8 percent in 2013. Upper-income residents had 13.7 percent of the share of households in 1989, and that figure swelled to 19.5 percent in 2013, the study found.

“A lot of middle-class jobs have vaporized,” said Russell Hancock, president of San Jose-based Joint Venture Silicon Valley. “The support positions, the assembly line positions, the jobs that paid the middle class — a lot of those have gone away.”

A big chunk of the jobs that are being created in the Bay Area are in the high-tech sector, which requires specialized skill sets to fill them. When jobs that would cater to the middle class wane, that can force people to relocate — in many cases, out of the Bay Area entirely.

“This summer, I have booked more business than in any of the other 27 years that I’ve been working,” said McElfresh, the moving consultant. “People are packing up and leaving.”

Eaton, while happy to have escaped the high cost of living and traffic, recently found herself longing for one Bay Area staple — its mild weather.

“There’s a huge thunderstorm overhead,” Eaton said while talking to a reporter. “Got to get used to that, I guess.”

None of this ^^^ is news to me, and it's all accurate. yet what I posted is true, the home on the next court over from ours just sold for 1.3, and the asking price was 1.150; it had several offers on the first weekend.

We live an hour to the Pacific Ocean, 4 hours to Tahoe, 40 minutes to downtown San Francisco by BART (parking in The City of SF is next to impossible) allowing us to attend Giants Games at AT&T Park and soon the Warriors New Facility; Broadway Shows, Gourmet Restaurants, and today in our yard it was 99 degree, tomorrow it is projected to be 106 here, and yet a 40 minute ride on BART and less than a half hour on the N Judah (lite rail) will put us at Ocean Beach at 65 degrees.

 

[deanrd]

Republicans don't want people who work in restaurants to be able to afford to eat there.

 

[Markle]

Or you're in school. That's what I did all through college; worked as a store clerk for a drug store chain. Of course, after college, things got a lot better.

I don't think I could count all the jobs I had from starting high school through college. Most time two jobs and if no classes in summer, three. If it paid, it fit my schedule, no job was beneath me. Graduated from the University of Miami with no debt. Probably tough to do today.

 

[danielpalos]

Or you're in school. That's what I did all through college; worked as a store clerk for a drug store chain. Of course, after college, things got a lot better.

I don't think I could count all the jobs I had from starting high school through college. Most time two jobs and if no classes in summer, three. If it paid, it fit my schedule, no job was beneath me. Graduated from the University of Miami with no debt. Probably tough to do today.

You may have, "worked too hard and learned too little".

 

[debbiedowner]

Tons, look at McDonalds and BK for example.

Showing more ignorance are you?

With McDonald's they only own 5% of the stores , the rest are small business owners fool..


So again scared to research the profit margins of fast food restaurants?




.

Yep, guess McDonald's doesn't profit from those stores just because they're owned by a franchisee... Again, I was right, a string of retarded posts by you.

-McDonalds doesn't make huge profits.
-The free market won't eliminate expensive restaurants.
- The owner of the restaurant needs to drive a Porche or else he's considered "poor."

Here is a example ignoramus..

The Average Profit Margin for a Restaurant






Full-Service Restaurants
Full-service restaurants at all levels spent about 32 percent of each dollar on the cost of food and beverages, 33 percent on salaries and wages, and from 5 percent to 6 percent on restaurant occupancy costs. Profit margins, however, varied according to the cost of the average check per person. Those with checks under $15 showed a profit of 3 percent. Those with checks from $15 to $24.99 boasted the highest profit margin at 3.5 percent. Finally, those with checks of $25 and over had the lowest profits, at 1.8 percent.

.

Your little link says full service restaurants have an average profit of 3%-3.5% on checks between $15-$25, but then 1.8% on checks over $25. There's no reason for a profit margin to shrink if the check is higher. Your source sucks and is bull shit.

It's the real world kid , like I said go to any small town USA and show me where are all the porshes , or mansions from these rich McDonald's , arbys, pizza hut owners?



You stupid.


.

Most of the restaurants you referred to are multi units and everyone I know that has multiple units of the above restaurants live in a mansion and dive two or 3 mercedes and also own condos on the beaches. Not many one unit ff restaurant owners out there anymore.

 

[Markle]

California exports its poor to Texas, other states, while wealthier people move in

Then why are billions of more dollars leaving than moving in?

I thought Progressives supported low-income households. Instead, you are telling us you favor kicking them out of "your" state. How compassionate!

 

[Markle]

You may have, "worked too hard and learned too little".

 

[Iceweasel]

Maybe they should not pass the wage increase on to the consumer. Sooner or later these business owners need to take the hit.

Kill the greedy kulaks, eh comrade?

No , just let them pay a decent wage. If they can't run a efficient restaurant they should close.

Spending more than they can rake in isn't efficient. You couldn't run a hot dog stand.

 

[Iceweasel]

Showing more ignorance are you?

With McDonald's they only own 5% of the stores , the rest are small business owners fool..


So again scared to research the profit margins of fast food restaurants?




.

Yep, guess McDonald's doesn't profit from those stores just because they're owned by a franchisee... Again, I was right, a string of retarded posts by you.

-McDonalds doesn't make huge profits.
-The free market won't eliminate expensive restaurants.
- The owner of the restaurant needs to drive a Porche or else he's considered "poor."

Here is a example ignoramus..

The Average Profit Margin for a Restaurant






Full-Service Restaurants
Full-service restaurants at all levels spent about 32 percent of each dollar on the cost of food and beverages, 33 percent on salaries and wages, and from 5 percent to 6 percent on restaurant occupancy costs. Profit margins, however, varied according to the cost of the average check per person. Those with checks under $15 showed a profit of 3 percent. Those with checks from $15 to $24.99 boasted the highest profit margin at 3.5 percent. Finally, those with checks of $25 and over had the lowest profits, at 1.8 percent.

.

Your little link says full service restaurants have an average profit of 3%-3.5% on checks between $15-$25, but then 1.8% on checks over $25. There's no reason for a profit margin to shrink if the check is higher. Your source sucks and is bull shit.

It's the real world kid , like I said go to any small town USA and show me where are all the porshes , or mansions from these rich McDonald's , arbys, pizza hut owners?



You stupid.


.

Most of the restaurants you referred to are multi units and everyone I know that has multiple units of the above restaurants live in a mansion and dive two or 3 mercedes and also own condos on the beaches. Not many one unit ff restaurant owners out there anymore.

LOL, too many downers. Get sober and read your posts.

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

Maybe they should not pass the wage increase on to the consumer. Sooner or later these business owners need to take the hit.

Kill the greedy kulaks, eh comrade?

No , just let them pay a decent wage. If they can't run a efficient restaurant they should close.

If they can't run a efficient restaurant they should close.

Exactly! Because the one thing that really helps low wage workers is putting their employer out of business.

 

[Flopper]

Restaurant die-off is first course of California’s $15 minimum wage

In a pair of affluent coastal California counties, the canary in the mineshaft has gotten splayed, spatchcocked and plated over a bed of unintended consequences, garnished with sprigs of locally sourced economic distortion and non-GMO, “What the heck were they thinking?”

The result of one early experiment in a citywide $15 minimum wage is an ominous sign for the state’s poorer inland counties as the statewide wage floor creeps toward the mark.

Consider San Francisco, an early adopter of the $15 wage. It’s now experiencing a restaurant die-off, minting jobless hash-slingers, cashiers, busboys, scullery engineers and line cooks as they get pink-slipped in increasing numbers. And the wage there hasn’t yet hit $15.

As the East Bay Times reported in January, at least 60 restaurants around the Bay Area had closed since September alone.

A recent study by Michael Luca at Harvard Business School and Dara Lee Luca at Mathematica Policy Research found that every $1 hike in the minimum wage brings a 14 percent increase in the likelihood of a 3.5-star restaurant on Yelp! closing.

Another telltale is San Diego, where voters approved increasing the city’s minimum wage to $11.50 per hour from $10.50, this after the minimum wage was increased from $8 an hour in 2015 – meaning hourly costs have risen 43 percent in two years.

The cost increases have pushed San Diego restaurants to the brink, Stephen Zolezzi, president of the Food and Beverage Association of San Diego County, told the San Diego Business Journal. Watch for the next mass die-off there...

Luckily, I live in the central coast area between L.A. and San Francisco, so this area hasn't gone as extreme left as those parts of California.

I eat in Seattle fairly often where they have the $15 minimum wage. The only change I've seen is some restaurants have raised their prices. Possibly a few marginally profitable restaurants have closed. Other than that it's about the same. New restaurants are opening daily, the population is growing over 1,000 a week, and unemployment has dropped to 2.9%, not exactly the predicted disaster when the minimum wage increase was proposed.

Why would anyone eat in Seattle when the same restaurant is usually down the road in Tacoma, Renton, Bellevue, Puyallup, or any other number of cities without the added costs?

Driving time. I've eaten all over King and Pierce country and Seattle has the best restaurants by far unless you're satisfied with restaurants like Denny's, Pizza Hut and other family style restaurants.

 

[danielpalos]

California exports its poor to Texas, other states, while wealthier people move in

Then why are billions of more dollars leaving than moving in?

I thought Progressives supported low-income households. Instead, you are telling us you favor kicking them out of "your" state. How compassionate!

Just one metric. We recently legalized pot and expect billions to come in.

 

[baileyn45]

Maybe they should not pass the wage increase on to the consumer. Sooner or later these business owners need to take the hit.

Kill the greedy kulaks, eh comrade?

No , just let them pay a decent wage. If they can't run a efficient restaurant they should close.

I find that attitude almost sickening. Think about it, you have a restaurant that's hanging in there, no one getting rich but everyone making a living. Enter the govt. Everyone loses their job. Watch the leftists celebrate.

 

[HenryBHough]

Restaurant I used to frequent closed recently.

Owner wanted to retire and put it on the market.

He kept reducing the price and potential buyers kept figuring out operating costs.

Then they walked away.

With the new and improved minimum wage nobody seemed able to find a sale price low enough to make it a viable proposition.

It's closed. 30+ people are out of work. He's not even boarding up the windows but keeping up the fire insurance.

And hoping for riots.

 

[Flopper]

Maybe they should not pass the wage increase on to the consumer. Sooner or later these business owners need to take the hit.

There it is folks, exactly how the left views business owners. They have this bizarre idea that all business owners just need to write bigger checks, and their own personal wealth will cover things.

Fucking amazing.

They will when people stop going to their restaurant because the prices are too expensive. Capitalism isn't a left sided mindset.

I think you are overlooking massive costs to the owner. Utilites, insurance, health insurance, frivilous slip-fall & lightswitch too low lawsuits, Unemployment costs, workers comp, mortgage, TAXES (FED, Local, state) Phone, equipment, maintenance, service contracts, TAX prepare, Lawyers, Accountants, Book keepers, Cars, Gas on and on.

You try it.

It's not just expenses. Most small business owners have much bigger investments at risk than their employees would imagine. I have a friend who is a chef and is opening up his own restaurant. He has about $30,000 of his saving going into it plus he has a personal loan of $60,000 and this is not a large restaurant.

The owner should not only collect enough revenue to pay his business expenses and living expenses but also a good return on a high risk investment.

I believe in minimum wage but not at the federal. There is far too much variation in the costs around the country. Even at the state level, a minimum wage in a large city may be totally inappropriate for a small rural town.

 

[Political Junky]

$15. an hour comes to $31,200 a year, working 40 hours a week.. hardly a fortune.

 

[danielpalos]

Restaurant I used to frequent closed recently.

Owner wanted to retire and put it on the market.

He kept reducing the price and potential buyers kept figuring out operating costs.

Then they walked away.

With the new and improved minimum wage nobody seemed able to find a sale price low enough to make it a viable proposition.

It's closed. 30+ people are out of work. He's not even boarding up the windows but keeping up the fire insurance.

And hoping for riots.

only flippers instead of cooks?

 

[Wyatt earp]

California exports its poor to Texas, other states, while wealthier people move in

Then why are billions of more dollars leaving than moving in?

I thought Progressives supported low-income households. Instead, you are telling us you favor kicking them out of "your" state. How compassionate!

Just one metric. We recently legalized pot and expect billions to come in.

It's not "legal" I can't wait till Trump starts arresting you bum's



.

 

[Wyatt earp]

$15. an hour comes to $31,200 a year, working 40 hours a week.. hardly a fortune.

Your point?


.