As far as the $2263-4000 difference in property tax the first year, where are you getting that? Texas’ property rate is about 2.12% of market value, forever (it can be more or less, depending on local programs and school districts, but is usually around there) California’s is 0.77%-1.07% the year you buy and is essentially frozen forever. So a $500k house in TX (which is _no longer_ enough for an in-demand Austin or Dallas neighborhood) will often carry the tax tag of a $1m CA home. An $700-1m house in TX (which _is_ where a home in an in demand Dallas neighborhood begins to start) carries roughly the tax burden of a $1.4-2m CA home.
That’s a lot more than people expect! And your payment will be increasing, sometimes significantly, forever!
The California state income tax on a gross of $150k would be $10730, not $13950. Furthermore, the deductions come off the top marginal rate, so if you are taking the standard deduction, maxing out your 401(k) contributions etc knock several thousand dollars off that figure.
I won't argue that California isn't squeezing out lower incomes. That much is clear. But you're overestimating what that income is. Lower income families leave California because of housing costs, not because of income taxes. The median California household owes < $1000/yr in state income taxes.
Most tech workers will be paying 9.3% in CA State Income tax, let's assume they move to Texas with a $150k job. That's $13,950 fewer taxes paid on income to CA.
Moving to Texas they'll pay about an average $2263 more in property Taxes to TX. Probably a bit more realistically so let's say $4000 since they'll probably be buying property that's above the average price. That's still around a $10k/year raise, with lower cost of living and lower crime, and that's assuming they didn't negotiate a raise which is unlikely.