Certain states make it easier than others to raise a family, notes a report released Monday by personal finance website WalletHub.
“Raising a family has become significantly more expensive in recent years as the cost of living has risen quickly,” WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said in a statement, “In fact, it can cost a family well over $300,000 to raise a child to age 18, according to statistics from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.”
It’s important, Lupo said, for parents to live in a place that is not only affordable but also provides quality health care, education, safety and opportunities for enrichment.
To identify areas with the best combination of those factors, WalletHub compared the 50 states across these key dimensions:
- Family fun, including number of attractions, share of families with young children and share of children 0 to 17 who live in neighborhoods with a park or playground
- Health and safety, including pediatricians per capita, share of uninsured children, violent and property crimes per capita and share of children 6 to 17 who go to safe schools
- Education and child care, including quality of public schools, public high school graduation rate, child daycare services per capita and their quality
- Affordability, including housing affordability, median annual family income, share of children 0 to 17 whose families had trouble paying medical bills in past 12 months
- Socioeconomics, including job opportunities and security, share of two-parent families, wealth gap and share of families living in poverty
See the gallery for the 12 best states to raise a family, according to WalletHub.
© Touchpoint Markets, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to TMSalesOperations@arc-network.com. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.