They are either just lying or totally fudging numbers in some way. I took my very middle class house and my very middle class income and got some rough calculations assuming I was in suburban San Diego instead of suburban Texas. Property+Income Tax came out about 50% more than what I pay for property tax in Texas. Only other taxes I've ever paid here are < $100 for car registration annually, sales taxes, and federal income tax. Oh, and the house I would get in San Diego for the same money would be about 1500 sq ft short of my house in Texas. So, I guess California would be great if I were a leftist that wants to pay 50% more tax and live in a 500sqft shitbox.