If you live in a major metropolis and have had enough of the steep living costs, poor air quality, rampant crime and other negatives, you're not alone. A slew of big cities around the globe are seeing an exodus of residents who are leaving the bright lights behind for a quieter, less stressful life elsewhere. We take a look at 15 popular urban areas that people are fleeing in their droves and reveal exactly why they are relocating.

One of just two Alpha++ urban areas in the world, the city that never sleeps is famed for its fast-paced lifestyle and boundless employment, cultural and entertainment opportunities. Nevertheless, living in the Big Apple can be especially challenging and a recent report by Bloomberg found that as many as 277 residents are leaving each day, more than any other US city.

Between July 2017 and July 2018 New York lost 180,306 inhabitants but gained only 131,746, according to the US Census Bureau. Experts have cited a number of reasons for the exodus. They include the city's punishing living expenses, high tax rates and dilapidated infrastructure, not to mention the poor public schools, shocking rates of homelessness and fiercely competitive work culture that can easily lead to burnout. 

London, the world's other Alpha++ city, is having a similar problem holding on to its residents. Data published earlier this year by the UK's Office for National Statistics shows that 340,498 inhabitants quit England's capital between June 2017 and June 2018, but only 237,270 people from other parts of the country moved in.

Eye-watering residential property prices and extortionate rents, as well as rising crime – London is experiencing a violent crime epidemic with offences involving knives at an all-time high – are prompting many long-term residents to seek a better quality of life away from the stresses and strains of the city.

Paris is renowned for its beautiful architecture, rich cultural heritage, world-class shopping and restaurants, and a whole lot more besides, yet despite its many attractions, the City of Lights, in particular the inner city within the Périphérique ring road, is shedding a significant number of residents each year.

According to the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies, an average of 11,900 people bid adieu to the French capital between 2011 and 2016, the most recent period for which data is available. The overriding reason for the mass departure from Paris is its punishing rents and house prices, which are being exacerbated by the rise in short-term Airbnb-style lets.

Likewise, Toronto is experiencing an exodus of residents. Looking at data released by Statistics Canada, net intraprovincial migration out of the Toronto Census Metropolitan Area covering the period from July 2017 to July 2018 resulted in a population decline of 0.8%, which doesn't seem like much but is pretty significant over a 12-month period.

The age groups most likely to leave are adults in their 30s and children under five, meaning that the city is losing young families. The culprit? Like so many places featured in this round-up, rising housing costs, which squeeze families with relatively low incomes but larger space requirements, are to blame.

During the most recent quarter of this year more than 21,000 Sydney residents waved goodbye and moved out of New South Wales, according to data from real estate company Domain. Although the vibrant Australian city has long been regarded as one of the most liveable urban areas in the world, many long-term inhabitants are contemplating a move elsewhere.

Yet again it all boils down to housing costs. Though house prices and rents have fallen over the past year, they remain unsustainably high for many people, and property prices are beginning to rise again. The median house price in the city was a whopping AU$875,000 (US$598,770/£466,375) in June, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, while median weekly rent came in at AU$525 (US$359/£280), says Domain.

The most visited city in the world, Hong Kong has a plethora of attractions for both tourists and residents alike, but exorbitant living costs, as well as the political unrest that has rocked the Chinese autonomous territory since March and shows no signs of abating anytime soon, are causing many residents to consider leaving for good.

Immigration consultancies have been inundated with enquiries from residents who are eager to quit the former British colony. Fed up with the high cost of living and ongoing protests, and fearful of an authoritarian crackdown by the powers that be in Beijing, many Hong Kongers are mulling over a move abroad to places such as Australia, Canada, the US and UK.

Back to America, the same Bloomberg study which found that 277 people are leaving New York on a daily basis revealed that Los Angeles is losing 201 residents each day. The figure is backed up by US Census Bureau data which shows that more people are quitting the City of Angels and Orange County than are moving in.

Again, the exodus mainly comes down to the sky-high cost of housing. People are shunning the coastal city's overinflated house prices and rip-off rents in favour of more affordable locales inland. Other factors motivating residents to leave include hefty property taxes and nightmarish traffic congestion.

New Zealand's most populous city scores the highest out of any urban area in our round-up when it comes to quality of life, bagging joint third place in Mercer's 2019 Quality of Living Ranking. Despite this impressive rating, a recent report by top economist Benje Patterson found that Auckland lost 30,000 residents between June 2013 and June 2017.

As is the case in many major cities around the world, excessive housing costs are pushing out cash-strapped residents who struggle to make ends meet each month after paying their rent or mortgage. Patterson also cited Auckland's traffic congestion as a reason people are turning their backs on the city.

Auckland's situation is reflected in San Francisco and the wider Bay Area. North California's largest urban area may boast stunning architecture, a relatively laid-back lifestyle and pleasant climate, but these factors haven't stopped tens of thousands of residents from leaving to begin a new life further afield.

Like Auckland, outrageously expensive housing costs and traffic congestion are turning people off the area. Data from the US Census Bureau shows that, between 2013 and 2017, 35,400 residents moved to other more affordable and less traffic-congested locations, notably Portland, Oregon, parts of Texas and even across the border into Canada.

Delhi has hit the headlines of late due to its atrocious air quality, which has left residents reeling. The thick smog that frequently descends on the city, which has been ranked the world's most polluted metropolis, makes day-to-day life almost unbearable for many residents and is directly responsible for thousands of premature deaths each year.

A survey conducted earlier this month by Indian website LocalCircles revealed that 40% of Delhiites want to move away from the city, and many people, mainly wealthier denizens who have the means to start a new life elsewhere, have done so already. Dubbed 'pollution refugees' by The Washington Post, they have headed to places like Goa and Bangalore, and have even ventured overseas to escape Delhi's poisonous air.

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Families with young children are deserting the centre of Madrid to be replaced by adults between the ages of 29 and 39 without children, changing the demographics of the Spanish capital. Rising house prices and rents are to blame with many pointing the finger at the growth of short-term Airbnb-style rentals, which are pricing out many long-term residents.

A sign of the exodus of families, schools that were once oversubscribed are now crying out for new pupils. Young professionals, who are attracted by the city centre's wealth of employment, cultural and entertainment opportunities, have more disposable income to play with and are in a better financial position to afford the increasing living costs.

Interestingly, the opposite is true of Istanbul. The Turkish city's high rate of unemployment and soaring living costs are pushing out young hipster professionals. More people are now leaving Turkey's largest urban areas than moving in. Between 2017 and 2018, 595,000 residents departed from Istanbul, according to the Turkish Statistical Institute.

There are other reasons, apart from the lack of job opportunities and increasing cost of living, why young people are moving away from the city. These include traffic congestion and terrorism fears. While many young Turks are migrating overseas, a large number of millennials are trying their luck in the countryside, settling in small towns and villages.

A wind of demographic change is sweeping through the Windy City as a large number of residents up sticks and move away. According to Bloomberg, as many as 161 folks are exiting Chicago each day. 

In fact, based on data compiled by the US Census Bureau for 2019, Chicago's population has declined for the fourth consecutive year. Former residents have given all sorts of reasons why they called it a day on the city. These range from Chicago's high crime rates and stiff taxes to the lavish living costs.

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Not for the faint-hearted, Cairo is a chaotic city with a population of more than 20 million people that is plagued by crumbling infrastructure, traffic gridlock and a serious problem with pollution. It's no wonder therefore that the Egyptian authorities have decided to start afresh and construct a shiny new $45 billion (£34.9bn) administrative capital.

Though it hasn't happened just yet, Cairo is poised to see a mass exodus of its wealthiest denizens and civil servants upon the completion of the new administrative capital, which is taking shape in the desert 28 miles to the east of the city and will offer a much more salubrious lifestyle for those who afford to live there.

Like the lion's share of large cities in the US, New Orleans is experiencing population decline. The latest US Census Bureau figures show that the number of residents in the Big Easy decreased by 1,000 between 2016 and 2018, the first fall since the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, which ravaged the city back in 2005.

Possible reasons for this drop in population include high housing costs and a generally high cost of living in the city along with a weak economy and relatively high unemployment. The jobless rate in New Orleans was 5% in June, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, far higher than the nationwide average of 3.7%.

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