It’s official.
Billionaire Elon Musk told shareholders Thursday that he’s moving Tesla headquarters from Palo Alto, Calif., to Austin.
Is the move political? Is it financial?
California’s COVID-19-related protocols angered Musk. Gov. Greg Abbott said Tesla supported the state’s “social policies”, but Musk has kept mum on Texas’ abortion law after Abbott made the claim.
Rather, with shareholders listening in, Musk, whose net worth is $203.9 billion, said it was more of a financial decision. Austin is more accommodating for the pool of workers that Tesla is aiming to attract.
“It’s tough for people to afford houses and a lot of people have to come in from far away,” he said. “There’s a limit to how big you can scale in the Bay Area.”
For sure. The average home value in the San Francisco market is $1.5 million, according to Zillow. In Austin, the median home value is $596,446. You could fit in a Tesla or two with that kind of savings.
Musk’s Tesla factory is under construction in Austin. He also has the SpaceX facility in Boca Chica. He’s hinted at making a residential move to Austin, but so far, we’ve only seen rumors of him living in a prefabricated box house near SpaceX.
Musk would ease into a state known for its eccentric billionaires.
“I do think he’s the perfect incoming Texan — free with his thoughts, adventurous, intelligent, visionary, and loves life and ‘the next thing,’ ” said Ernie Carswell, superstar agent from Beverly Hills, Calif.-based Ernie Carswell & Associates who is very familiar with Musk’s properties in L.A.
“California’s loss is Texas’ gain.”
