Applebaum thinks the primary reason is that restrictive zoning rules have driven up the cost of building homes, ultimately making it too expensive for many people to go to places with higher-paying jobs. One study he cites found that if a lawyer moved from the Deep South to New York City in 2017, his net income would go up by about 39 percent after adjusting for housing costs — the same as it would have in 1960. If a janitor made the same move in 1960, he would gain 20 percent in net income. But by 2017, the janitor would be 7 percent worse off, because his gains in pay would be outstripped by housing costs.
Source: Opinion | US housing costs are stifling economic mobility
