‘It is hard to make a living’: Gee labels housing costs are pushing Americans abroad at record rates
Mar 1, 2026, 3:13 AM
People are leaving the U.S. at record rates. For the first time since the Great Depression, the U.S. experienced a net negative migration in 2025 with an estimated 150,000 more departures than arrivals.
Gee Scott and Ursula Reutin, co-hosts of “The Gee and Ursula Show” on KIRO Newsradio, explained why they believe more and more Americans, young or old, have been moving out of the country as of late.
“I’ll tell you why people are moving out of the United States. When you have an opportunity to get outside of your bubble, and you have an opportunity to travel to all parts of the world, you start to realize the world is a big place. I don’t have to stay in this area for my entire life,” Gee said. “There are youngsters who have a chance to go to New Zealand and go out and visit and see the world.
“If you’re living here in Washington state, it is hard to make a living. Housing Affordability is real,” Gee continued. “There are other places in the world where you don’t have the rat race, and some people feel that, and some people are like, ‘You know what? It just makes sense for me.’ And I think we’re seeing more of that.”
Urusla noted that she can see the appeal for people having the desire to move out of the country, excluding any political beliefs, but solely prioritizing the chance to see new parts of the world.
“I think this is a beautiful thing. I appreciate that you didn’t go straight to, well, it’s all about the politics. For some people, it probably is about the politics. I think it goes beyond that,” Ursula said. “All of a sudden, especially a lot of younger people, are saying, Why do I have to stay here? For me personally, I look forward to retiring in this country. We only have a short amount of time here on Earth, and we have this beautiful world and different places we can live. I think it’s awesome. I think it’s especially cool that younger people are saying I’m going to adventure out.
Watch the full discussion in the video above.
Listen to Gee and Ursula on “The Gee and Ursula Show” weekday mornings from 9 am to 12 pm on KIRO Newsradio.
