Why So Few Americans Live Along The Gulf Coast Of The United States

It's because it's a swamp

I'm from the MS gulf coast and let me tell you. Summer lasts 8 months and from June to August it's painful to walk outside. It's not like arid heat where you can get under some shade and it makes a world of difference. Shade during the summer here basically does nothing it feels like you're being steamed.

I remember doing Army training in the dead of summer late July-late August 2009 at Camp Shelby, Mississippi. The most brutal humidity I've ever felt in my life. Our barracks had no AC and it was miserable, 90 degrees at 0500 wakeup and sweat already pouring off of you. I deployed to Iraq a year later and the dry desert heat in the 110-125 degree range was actually more tolerable than the 90-100 with humidity in Mississippi. I actually had spent a lot of time in the south during my time in the Army too (Fort Benning, Bragg, and Polk) so I wasn't totally unaccustomed to southern heat, but what I went through in Mississippi that summer was brutal. We actually had a lot of guys who passed out as heat casualties, more than I ever saw in Georgia or North Carolina. All the respect in the world to people who live down there and endure that humidity. I'll take the snow and no humidity in the midwest over that any day haha

It's super underrated. The coastline itself does not really get pretty until you hit Alabama. Everything west of Mobile bay is fairly dirty because of the way the Mississippi river breaks up into a delta, but there is a stretch of beautiful beach about 100 miles long from Gulf Shores, AL to Panama City, FL where the sand is brilliant white and baby powder soft. It is fairly developed for the most part, but the properties are considerably cheaper than other parts of the country. There are even a few places where you can still buy land on the ocean and build a dream home. Many people from the south call it the Redneck Riviera.

I don't know too many people who "beg" for gulf coast weather. Maybe in the middle of winter North Dakotans want it to be 60° like it is down there, but the summers are downright miserable and they seem to drag on forever.

I’m 67 and have lived on the Northern Gulf Coast (Mobile and Pensacola) my whole life. The summers can be brutal here for non-natives who aren’t used to it. A Yankee friend of mine came down and went fishing with me a few years ago. He said he felt like he was going to die from the heat and humidity. Now, he’ll only visit in spring and fall. Our winters on the Northern Gulf Coast are not necessarily mild like the Southern Gulf Coast of Florida. Last winter we had several days with night time temps in the 20s. But none of that is as detrimental to growth as the insurance problem we have. Due to the regularity of hurricanes, wind insurance can be prohibitively expensive. My wind insurance is $8000 a year. Wind in most Florida communities is a separate policy and the deductible is a percentage of your property value, so your deductible can be exorbitant. My homeowners is another $2500 a year, so over $10,000 a year for wind and homeowners insurance. Now, the further inland one resides the less it can be, but I’m assuming your description of, “Gulf Coast,” means closer to the actual coast. Insurance is a really big deal for this part of the world. I’m currently living without wind insurance because I paid off my mortgage and it was no longer required, but it’s a huge risk on my part. One good hurricane and I could be homeless. That’s a pretty good incentive to live somewhere else.

Lived and worked in the heat and humidity in Pensacola, FL since 60s. Moved away many times and always returned. It's my home and I love it. Doug Curled, age 72

Am moving there this summer. Spent every summer going there and the beaches are amazing. The people friendly and homes affordable. The gulf coast is Amazing

"If you don't mind the humidity" is the understatement of the year. I live in Houston. The Gulf coast from here to the tip of Florida get an ungodly amount of rain. And sometimes when it's not raining the sky looks like it will start pouring all day long. And the heat is brutal. Mixing the two plus tossing in "the occasional" tropical storm, like you say, is almost unbearable. At 4am here in August it's over 80 outside. You can't escape the heat and humidity for MONTHS. The only reason I live here is family and good economy.

I'm from Houma, LA. I think one problem aside from the insane humidity and threat of hurricanes, is government corruption (in Louisiana at least. I can't speak for the rest of the region), and the fact that the only major tourist destination is New Orleans. The oilfield industry is the only real job you can get without a college degree, and nobody truly wants to work out there.

I think you should also include that the weather down there is barely within the spectrum of tolerable during the summer months. I've had the pleasure of visiting the area, and while the people, food, culture, and scenery were amazing, the extreme heat and humidity made me immediately homesick.

I was just on the Gulf Coast 3 days ago. I absolutely love that region.

Five years ago, i had to stop over in Houston on flight back to Virginia. There was a storm that night forming in the Gulf, and i was lucky enough to sit on the right side of the plane in a window seat. The spectacle was beyond description. The interplay of cloud to cloud lightning at vast scales was both eerie and humbling. i don't think ppl can appreciate the absolute volume of wet, hot and angry air that can spin up in that hurricane hatchery we call the Gulf.

I'm from the Gulf Coast so I have a lot of opinions of this. Firstly, New Orleans and Gulf Coast MS have prioritized hospitality and service industries jobs in terms of economic growth. They've done this instead of focusing on manufacturing and/or tech hub jobs. And the hospitality industry is so volatile that it can't sustain a city or region, especially when some sort of event, like a hurricane or Covid, takes place. I don't think it's some big coincidence that crime in New Orleans has skyrocketed since Covid. NOBODY had a job in the city. Sure, crime increased everywhere in 2020, but New Orleans is now number 1 in terms of crime.

Lousiana and Mississippi are bayou; a lot of Florida is swamp; the "nice" beaches are really limited to Gulf Shores to Panama City, so just a small part of that area.

I think some people commenting didn't notice that pointed out that south Florida & Houston are growing so much since they seem to be putting most of the blame on the weather. Hurricane Katrina is probably the biggest factor, it's tough to really understand just how much it just obliterated without seeing it first hand. My parents grew up in this region (Mom in Moss Point, MS, not too far from Biloxi, Dad in Grand Bay, Alabam, near Mobile) and my grandparents still lived there is 2005. So many people decided to leave instead of rebuild, and the impact of that has lasted a long time.

Number 1 reason: A particular swampdweller shouting "THIS IS MY SWAMP"!!

Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama are now getting way more destructive tornadoes than they used to. Look what happened in Mississippi last Friday.

It’s because the flies are the size of hummingbirds

Sourthern Louisiana native here. Hot summers? LORD it’s been HOT since April