Wealthy homebuyers are increasingly gravitating toward lower-tax, business-friendly states such as Texas, as taxes and regulation take on greater weight in where affluent Americans choose to live and invest, according to Mauricio Umansky, founder and CEO of global brokerage The Agency.

"That trend is definitely happening," Umansky told FOX Business, referring to affluent residents departing high-tax cities and states. "… But not only tax friendly — business friendly."

Umansky, whose firm operates 170 offices across 17 countries, said policies that raise the cost of owning or selling high-end real estate are weighing on luxury markets. He cited New York City's pied-à-terre tax and Los Angeles' Measure ULA, widely known as the "mansion tax," as notable examples. Measure ULA, approved by Los Angeles voters in 2022, adds a 4% transfer tax on property sales above $5 million and 5.5% on those above $10 million, layered on top of existing city and county transfer taxes.

"The pied-à-terre tax is really hurtful," Umansky said. "In Los Angeles, we have the ULA tax, which is very hurtful."

Those policies, he said, are helping redirect wealth toward markets including Texas. Texas levies no state income tax, as do Florida and a handful of other states, a factor that has long made them magnets for high earners relocating from states such as California and New York, which impose top marginal income tax rates among the highest in the nation.

"You are seeing a lot of the wealth go, and they're going to places like Dallas, Texas," Umansky said. "You're seeing a lot of growth there. So there's a shift."

Texas is not the only region drawing interest. Umansky noted that buyers with greater flexibility are also considering other parts of the country, including the Southeast, as remote work grants them more freedom in choosing where to reside.

Still, the movement of wealth does not signal that traditional luxury strongholds such as California and New York are collapsing, he cautioned.

"We're definitely seeing a trend of exodus, but still growth," Umansky said, describing the market landscape as "very mixed."

Los Angeles is beginning to show signs of recovery at the high end, he added, as sellers become more flexible on pricing and buyers start making offers. The Hamptons also remains strong, while California continues to generate significant wealth, partly fueled by the artificial intelligence boom.

Both California and New York remain critical economic engines despite some residents looking elsewhere, Umansky emphasized.

"I think it's super imperative for our country that we continue to protect California and New York," he said.

His remarks come as New York City faces scrutiny over its new pied-à-terre tax on luxury second homes, including recent criticism from billionaire investor Bill Ackman and Citadel founder Ken Griffin.

President Donald Trump argued in a Truth Social post on Tuesday that the tax could ultimately cost the city more revenue than it generates if wealthy property owners and taxpayers relocate to lower-tax states such as Florida and Texas.

Trump's comments followed a ruling one day earlier in which a New York judge temporarily restrained Mayor Zohran Mamdani's administration from moving forward with parts of the tax rollout, after three homeowners sued over how the city implemented the surcharge.

Staten Island Supreme Court Justice Wayne Ozzi ordered the city to remove a disputed property roll covering more than 900,000 homeowners and temporarily barred officials from imposing or collecting the surcharge based on that roll without first making the individualized determinations and providing the notice required under state tax law.

A hearing on the dispute is scheduled for Aug. 31. An appeal filed by the city triggered an automatic stay of the judge's order.

The lawsuit challenges the administration of the tax rather than the legality of the surcharge itself.

FOX Business' Brittany Miller contributed to this report.