Some new math has shown that Wilmington, Delaware, is the cheapest place in the U.S. to live in. That’s what Scholaroo found when they ranked 151 places based on eight factors to find the Best Places to Live. The site also said that Wilmington “has one of the lowest rent costs and the city has no sales taxes.” It does have an income tax, but Delaware does too, which wasn’t taken into account in the ranks.
The site gave affordability 18 out of 100 possible points. Affordability is based on four things: home value (9 points), rent (4.5 points), cost of living (2.25 points for “transportation, gas, etc.”), and sales tax (2.25 points). There is no general sales tax in Delaware, but there is a gross profits tax. Zillow says that the average home value in Wilmington is $302,174, which is a lot less than the national average of $346,270.
The language of rents is harder to understand. This is what RentCafe says: “The cost of rent depends on several factors, such as location, size, and quality.” Several websites say that the average monthly rent for an apartment in Wilmington is $1,506 though. Along with Brownsville, Texas, the other 10 places that were named most affordable are all in the Rust Belt.
Wilmington Ranked Overall in Affordable Cities
Wilmington came in at number 54 on the list as a whole. There are a lot of things that make it a great place to live: 38th for quality of life, 77th for opportunities, 96th for infrastructure, 113th for business, and 145th for crime and safety. No. 1 on the list is Naples, Florida, a great place to retire that came in dead last for cost of living. The website looked at 47 factors, which were put into eight groups. It didn’t say where the info it used came from.
Property crimes (1.18 points), robberies (1.18 points), murder (0.59 points), aggravated assault (1.18 points), violent crimes (0.59 points), burglary (1.18 points), theft (0.59 points), motor vehicle theft (1.18 points), sexual assault (1.18 points), police officers (0.59 points), and firefighters (0.59 points). Yes, burglary and theft are examples of property crimes.
What makes a place affordable? The home value (9 points), rent (4.5 points), cost of living (2.25 points), and sales taxes (2.25 points).
Ten points for the economy: owning a home (2.86 points), the poverty rate (1.43 points), and the median family income (5.71 points).
This section gives 15 points for quality of life. It includes weather (1.15 points for the rate at which the highest and lowest temperatures in 2022 will change), air quality (2.31 points), water quality (2.31 points), movie theaters (1.15 points), museums (1.15 points), parks (2.31 points), zoos (1.15 points), restaurants (1.15 points), coffee shops (1.15 points), and malls (1.15 points).
Ten points for health care: hospitals (4 points), doctors (2 points), nurses (2 points), dentists (1 point), and people who don’t have health insurance (1 point).
In terms of education, the high school completion rate gets 4.29 points, public schools get 2.14 points, private school tuition gets 2.14 points, public school spending on education gets 2.14 points, and the student-to-teacher ratio gets 2.14 points.
Chance (15 points): jobless rate (3.33 points), self-employment (1.67 points), jobs (3.33 points), people who work from home (1.67 points), bus commute time (1.67 points), and the pay gap between men and women (3.33 points). Indeed, unemployment and work are two words that mean the same thing.
Infrastructure (7 points): homes (1.75 points), the state of the bridges (3.5 points), and airports (1.75 points).
Leave a Reply