by Craig M. Douglas and Shelby Perea, Albuquerque Business First
January 20, 2017

Looking to relocate your family or business, or both? You might want to pause and consider what the folks at WalletHub have to say on the matter.

The District of Columbia-based research firm has taken a crack at ranking the U.S. states for alignment with the economic and social metrics that families consider when identifying where to put down roots. The resulting report, titled “2017’s Best and Worst States to Raise a Family,” offers analysis that ranges from the quantitative (the percentage of households with kids) to the subjective (“family fun” rank) in compiling a ranking of all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

New Mexico came in dead last — making New Mexico the worst place to raise a family, according to the Wallethub report.

The affordability ranking and the education/child care ranking were big factors in why New Mexico was put so low on the list. New Mexico was ranked 51st for affordability and 50th for education. Experts looked at housing, debt rates, credit scores, savings and retirement plans to assess a state’s affordability. For education and child care, researchers examined the quality of public schools, graduation rates and child care costs.

As for socioeconomics, the District of Columbia was the only place worse than New Mexico. Socioeconomics factored in a wide variety of things from divorce rates to unemployment rates.

New Mexico ranked better for the family fun category, coming in at 18th. Family fun was based off of number of attractions, fitness and recreational sports centers, weather and daily commute.

The WalletHub study comes after the Santa Fe New Mexican reported the state was ranked 49th for child well-being in the New Mexico Kids Count Data Book from New Mexico Voices for Children, for the second year in a row.

Copyright 2017, Albuquerque Business First (http://www.bizjournals.com/albuquerque/news/2017/01/20/looking-for-happy-workers-see-where-new-mexico.html)