Businesses and people flock to Florida for taxes and lifestyle

Scott Absher is the CEO of Shiftpixy, a tech startup which just moved from California to Florida. Notable Wall Street companies such as Starwood Capital Group, Icahn Enterprises and Blackstone's tech office and more are all moving to the Sunshine state. Jane Wells joins Shepard Smith to talk about the migration to Miami, Florida. For access to live and exclusive video from CNBC subscribe to CNBC PRO: https://cnb.cx/2NGeIvi

Move over, Texas. The Lone Star state has grabbed headlines as tech companies like Oracle, Hewlett-Packard Enterprise and billionaire Elon Musk are planning to move major operations from California for its greener pastures and — lower taxes.

But now, Miami is becoming a magnet for companies trying to escape from high taxes and over-crowding.

The Sunshine state’s most famous city has tried for years to convince companies it’s not just a playground for partying vacationers, but fertile ground for finance and tech firms, promoting a start-up vibe.

Then the coronavirus pandemic hit.

“I’ve been buying real estate in Miami for over 20 years, and it has been a great flight. Since Covid started, it’s a rocket ship,” said developer Alex Rodriguez — as in “A-Rod,” the former Major League Baseball superstar who has been investing in commercial and residential properties.

Rodriguez has recently partnered with Barry Sternlicht of Starwood Capital in developing restaurant and retail space inside Starwood’s new 144,000 square foot headquarters under construction in Miami Beach, the first Class A office space in that community.

Sternlicht moved Starwood from Greenwich, Connecticut, in 2018. Taxes had a lot to do with it, but he also blames political leadership, especially New York City under Mayor Bill de Blasio.

A reckoning for high-tax states

“People don’t feel safe,” Sternlicht said of New York. “The affluent are leaving in busloads, and Miami is getting more than their fair share.” He likens Miami to Singapore—a “working, diverse culture” that’s business friendly. “Frankly, there’s going to need to be a reckoning day for some of these states, like Illinois and New York and Connecticut — my home state — where they’re going to have to figure out they just can’t keep increasing taxes. It’s just not going to work. People can live in other places.”

The California legislature, for example, is considering raising the state’s top personal income tax rate above the current 13.3% and raise corporate income taxes. A bill that would have tried to tax wealthy Californians for up to 10 years after they move out of state died in the last session after severe backlash.

“It’s not just the taxes, it’s also about the quality of life,” Nitin Motwani said of Miami’s attraction. He’s a developer who left Wall Street and Goldman Sachs over a decade ago to return to Florida. “I loved New York. I just was passionate about South Florida, and I felt that, given what I’d seen in New York, South Florida really had great potential.”

» Subscribe to CNBC TV: https://cnb.cx/SubscribeCNBCtelevision
» Subscribe to CNBC: https://cnb.cx/SubscribeCNBC
» Subscribe to CNBC Classic: https://cnb.cx/SubscribeCNBCclassic

Turn to CNBC TV for the latest stock market news and analysis. From market futures to live price updates CNBC is the leader in business news worldwide.

The News with Shepard Smith is CNBC’s daily news podcast providing deep, non-partisan coverage and perspective on the day’s most important stories. Available to listen by 8:30pm ET / 5:30pm PT daily beginning September 30: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/09/29/the-news-with-shepard-smith-podcast.html?__source=youtube%7Cshepsmith%7Cpodcast

Connect with CNBC News Online
Get the latest news: http://www.cnbc.com/
Follow CNBC on LinkedIn: https://cnb.cx/LinkedInCNBC
Follow CNBC News on Facebook: https://cnb.cx/LikeCNBC
Follow CNBC News on Twitter: https://cnb.cx/FollowCNBC
Follow CNBC News on Instagram: https://cnb.cx/InstagramCNBC

https://www.cnbc.com/select/best-credit-cards/

#CNBC
#CNBCTV

Видео Businesses and people flock to Florida for taxes and lifestyle канала CNBC Television