Bay Area's migration is real, but Postal Service data shows California exodus isn't FacebookTwitterEmail [Want more news on a changing Bay Area? Sign up for the Bay Briefing newsletter here] Despite all the talk of people leaving the Bay Area during the pandemic, only a small fraction of residents have left the state, suggesting that reports of an exodus have been exaggerated, according to a Chronicle analysis of United States Postal Service data. Only 3.7% of the households and businesses that filed address changes in five Bay Area counties from March to November 2020 left California, a total of 4,264 move outs, according to the data.