Consumer Demand
Economic activity produced by illegal immigrant spending employs about 5% of the total US workforce. Illegal immigrants occupy over 3 million dwellings, or just under 4% of the total number of homes in the US. UCLA research indicates immigrants produce $150 billion of economic activity equivalent to spending stimulus every year. The advantages of illegal migration tend mostly to be on the side of the employer. An employer will benefit from the illegal status of a migrant who is desperate for work and therefore prepared to accept poor pay, usually below local norms. Hiring an illegal worker also brings the employer the advantage of paying less in the way of welfare contributions and other non-wage costs.
Approximately 0.5 million dwellings have become permanently vacant as a result of a reduction in the illegal immigrant population.
The reduced demand for housing created permanent unemployment for hundreds of thousands of building contractors, realtors, and mortgage brokers.
Economic decline caused by reduced spending by illegal immigrants in the US occurred at the same time as a rise in unemployment of approximately 1 million legal US workers that provide goods and services for the illegal immigrant population.
Nearly every dollar earned by illegal immigrants is spent immediately, and the average wage for US citizens is $10.25/hour with an average of 34 hours per week. This means that approximately 8 million US jobs are dependent upon economic activity produced by illegal immigrant activities within the US.
Reverse migration of illegal immigrants from the US back to Mexico since the 2008 crisis has reduced the overall population of illegal Hispanic immigrants in the US.
Read more about this topic: Economic Impact Of Illegal Immigrants In The United States, Economic Benefits of Illegal Immigrants
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