Writer: Ryan Gandolfo
2 min read January 2024 — While family dynamics in the U.S. have continued to shift with no longer one predominant family form, according to Pew Research Center, the best states for raising families offer an affordable cost of living, solid education and child care, public safety, and of course, good old fashioned family fun.
WalletHub recently released their Best & Worst States to Raise a Family in 2024, which placed Massachusetts as the No. 1 state for families. The top five states included North Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska, and New York, with 50 key indicators of family-friendliness compared across all 50 states such as median household income and job opportunities.
“Massachusetts is truly a unique state, and one of its richest resources is its intellectual capital. You not only have the best in class nationally but globally when it comes to companies and workforces across sectors, including education, science, and healthcare, to name a few,” Grace Lee, regional president of Massachusetts at M&T Bank told Invest:.
“There is an incredible ecosystem that punches way above its weight. The world saw that with locally-based Moderna’s response to the pandemic to quickly expedite a vaccine, and we continue to see an expansion in the reach and impact of Boston’s collective brain trust,” said Lee.
Overall, Massachusetts scored 66.96, nearly five points higher than North Dakota (62.15) and Minnesota (62.00), and ranked No. 1 in education and child care, No. 3 in affordability and No. 5 in health and safety.
Gov. Maura Healey recently told Invest: that the administrations five-year, $14 billion Capital Investment Plan is “designed to make Massachusetts more affordable, competitive, and equitable” by focusing on housing initiatives, transportation, and decarbonization, among other areas.
Minnesota ranked No. 1 among states for affordability, with data from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development estimating a three-person household with two full-time workers costs $69,912 annually. Addressing housing costs has been a primary focus in cities such as Minneapolis, with Mayor Jacob Frey telling Invest: that multifamily housing unit permits for new construction were up 92% year over year in Minneapolis in 2023.
“When I first took office, we invested between three to four times the previous record of funding, resulting in about five times the previous annual production of affordable housing. If you give people a foundation from which they can rise, they will. A home is the core of that foundation,” said Frey.
Among the lowest ranked states for raising a family were Arkansas, Alabama, West Virginia, Mississippi, and New Mexico, rounding out the bottom five. Meanwhile, some of the country’s largest economies, such as California, Texas, and Florida fell in the middle of the pack at No. 27, No. 28, and No. 31, respectively.
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