EP: California has been net losing native-born American population for decades. All that’s happening now is the net immigration is dropping fast too.

From my perspective, I prefer quality over quantity. I don’t know an easy way to look to see if this is a real trend, but it certainly seems like we’re getting less “huddled masses” and more highly educated immigrants, both young and mid-career.

As for “ominous trends,” we’re seeing a strong trend toward smaller household sizes, especially in older suburbs. The fact that empty nest boomers are staying in 3 and 4 bedroom SFRs when earlier generations might have moved to a smaller apartment or multi-gen household does not strike me as ominous, but simply the result of California’s very low property taxes and general high quality of life and prosperity.

To take a random example, Del Mar’s population dropped from 4,389 in the 2000 census to 4,161 in 2010.