{"id":2507,"date":"2023-06-02T01:39:10","date_gmt":"2023-06-02T01:39:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/billingsrealtybrokers.paradiseinnovations.com\/index.php\/2023\/06\/02\/americas-most-family-friendly-city-of-2023-is-a-surprise-and-may-not-cost-as-much-as-youd-think\/"},"modified":"2023-06-02T01:39:10","modified_gmt":"2023-06-02T01:39:10","slug":"americas-most-family-friendly-city-of-2023-is-a-surprise-and-may-not-cost-as-much-as-youd-think","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/billingsrealtybrokers.paradiseinnovations.com\/index.php\/2023\/06\/02\/americas-most-family-friendly-city-of-2023-is-a-surprise-and-may-not-cost-as-much-as-youd-think\/","title":{"rendered":"America\u2019s Most Family-Friendly City of 2023 Is a Surprise\u2014and May Not Cost as Much as You\u2019d Think"},"content":{"rendered":"

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School\u2019s almost out for the summer, but for some parents, the homework might be just beginning. For those hoping to move before school starts next year but aren\u2019t sure where to go, a new survey can point you in some smart directions\u2014that is, if you can afford it.<\/p>\n

WalletHub<\/a> has just released its 2023 Best & Worst Places to Raise a Family report, ranking how America\u2019s 180 biggest cities stack up by analyzing 45 key metrics that matter to parents. They include local school quality, crime rates, economic factors such as income and unemployment, as well as access to child care, health care, and recreation.<\/p>\n

The most family-friendly city of all this year is Fremont, CA<\/a>, which ranks No. 1 in terms of education and child care, and No. 2 for health and safety. And despite being located in the pricey San Francisco Bay Area, Fremont comes in 18th on the list for affordability, which means it\u2019s a relative bargain for the area.<\/p>\n

In fact, five of the top 10 kid-friendly metros are in California. However, decent options are scattered far and wide, and some surprising locales made the list, with Overland Park, KS,<\/a> coming in at No. 2.<\/p>\n

At the bottom\u2014that is, the worst for families\u2014is Cleveland, OH<\/a>, which ranks dead last for socioeconomics and very low for education, health, and affordability. Right behind Cleveland is Memphis, TN<\/a>, flagged as the worst in the data set for violent crime.<\/p>\n

The family-friendly premium: How much parents pay<\/h2>\n

Quality schooling and affordable housing are key factors families should consider when setting down roots.<\/p>\n

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What these rankings make abundantly clear is that parents who want the best for their kids might find they\u2019ll have to make some trade-offs. For instance, Overland Park was tops for affordability, but only 115th for \u201cfamily fun\u201d\u2014a category that includes access to playgrounds, parks, ice rinks, and other amenities.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Los Angeles<\/a> ranks No. 1 for family fun but No. 174 for affordability. The high cost of housing is a large part of the problem, with Realtor.com\u00ae data showing that the median listing price here hovers at $1.2 million.<\/p>\n

Aside from housing, taxes\u2014particularly for public schools\u2014is another big piece of the financial burden families must shoulder if they want the best education and opportunities for their kids.<\/p>\n

\u201cQuality schooling and affordable housing are key factors families should consider when setting down roots,\u201d says Susan J. Paik<\/strong>, a professor at the School of Educational Studies of Claremont Graduate University and one of WalletHub\u2019s experts for the report. \u201cThe cost of living, especially housing options, matters for growing families.\u201d<\/p>\n

For a closer look at what \u201cfamily-friendly\u201d will cost in terms of housing, here are the WalletHub rankings along with Realtor.com data on the median home prices for each area.<\/p>\n

10 most family-friendly cities<\/h2>\n

Fremont, CA: $1.25 million
\nOverland Park, KS: $638,950
\nIrvine, CA: $1.4 million
\nPlano, TX: $550,000
\nSouth Burlington, VT: $564,000
\nSan Diego, CA: $999,000
\nSan Jose, CA: $1.25 million
\nScottsdale, AZ: $939,000
\nGilbert, AZ: $600,000
\nSan Francisco, CA: $1.46 million<\/p>\n

Does a family-friendly city make a difference?<\/h2>\n

Parents have good reason to weigh all pertinent factors when they decide where to raise their families, due to a growing body of research that finds just how malleable kids\u2019 minds are to their surroundings.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a growing body of research suggesting that a child\u2019s development and a family\u2019s quality of life are influenced greatly by the city in which they live,\u201d says Cristina Santamar\u00eda Graff<\/strong>, an associate professor of education at Indiana University Purdue University and one of the experts consulted for this report. \u201cMore than ever, local officials need to consider the well-being of families inclusive of economic, physical, social, emotional, and environmental factors.\u201d<\/p>\n

So what should parents be thinking about as they peruse the WalletHub report?<\/p>\n

\u201cFamilies should strongly reflect on how places connect with and support their values as a family,\u201d says Sherrill W. Hayes<\/strong>, director of the School of Data Science and Analytics at Kennesaw State University in Georgia. \u201cThis is sometimes a difficult question for young parents since they may just be figuring themselves out as adults, but location determines access to jobs, activities, educational opportunities, social networks, and other intangibles.\u201d<\/p>\n

The post America\u2019s Most Family-Friendly City of 2023 Is a Surprise\u2014and May Not Cost as Much as You\u2019d Think<\/a> appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com\u00ae<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Getty Images School\u2019s almost out for the summer, but for some parents, the homework might be just beginning. For those hoping to move before school starts next year but aren\u2019t sure where to go, a new survey can point you in some smart directions\u2014that is, if you can afford it. WalletHub has just released its…Read More→<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":2508,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2507","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/billingsrealtybrokers.paradiseinnovations.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2507","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/billingsrealtybrokers.paradiseinnovations.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/billingsrealtybrokers.paradiseinnovations.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/billingsrealtybrokers.paradiseinnovations.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2507"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/billingsrealtybrokers.paradiseinnovations.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2507\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/billingsrealtybrokers.paradiseinnovations.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2508"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/billingsrealtybrokers.paradiseinnovations.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2507"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/billingsrealtybrokers.paradiseinnovations.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2507"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/billingsrealtybrokers.paradiseinnovations.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2507"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}