Here’s How Charlotte Ranks For Single Parents

CHARLOTTE, NC — All the struggles felt by parents are doubled for single parents, whether it be juggling a job and the kids’ schedules or trying to squeeze in a modicum of downtime for themselves. This is especially true for those who don’t have a network of friends or nearby family able to help in a pinch.

But a new report shows that where single parents live plays a role in just how hard that challenge is. And more kids are living with a single parent today than they used to. According to the Pew Research Center, about 21 percent of American kids are living with a single mom and another 4 percent are living with a single dad. That number was 12 percent in 1968 for moms and 1 percent for dads.

Unfortunately, Charlotte appears to be one of the harder places for solo parents. That’s according to MagnifyMoney, which this week published its report on the best places to raise a family as a single parent.

The report looked at four key factors: income, affordability, time and workplace protection to determine its rankings. Some of the metrics they looked at include median income, share of households living below the poverty line, income limits for child care assistance disparity, average commute time, average hours worked each week and statewide paid family-leave insurance.

Charlotte ranked 57th in the country out of the 100 largest metros. Here’s what they found:

• Income score: 52.8 (average is 51.48)
• Median income of single parents: $31,027 (average is $31,452)
• Difference between single parent income and all households: -46.4 percent (average is -47.4 percent)
• Share of single parents living below the poverty line: 39.3 percent (average is 39.2 percent)
• Affordability score: 51 (average is 44)
• Regional price parity: 93.5 (average is 98.38)
• Time score: 38.4 (average is 49.89)
• Workplace protection score: 5 (average is 16.8)
• Paid family leave in weeks per year: 0 (average is 1.82)

The best place to be a single parent, according to the report, is apparently Springfield in western Massachusetts. Springfield scored a 65.2 overall, even with an income score that was actually below the average of the other cities. The median income for single parents in the city is about $28,433 and 43 percent of single parents there live below the poverty line.

But Springfield scored much better in affordability, time and workplace protection, with scores of 59.1, 79.1 and 80, respectively.

Families get 12 weeks of paid family leave and 24 hours per year of protected time off for school events, both much higher than the average. Springfield parents earning under $46,280 a year are also eligible for child care state assistance, higher than the $38,601 average.

Here are the 10 best places to be a single parent and the overall score they received:

1. Springfield, MA — 65.2
2. Sacramento, CA — 62.2
3. Buffalo, NY — 61.5
4. Albany, NY — 59.7
5. Fresno, CA — 59.2
6. Syracuse, NY — 59.1
7. Worcester, MA — 58.7
8. Rochester, NY — 58.2
9. Oxnard, CA — 57.7
10. Spokeane, WA — 57.2

Several big cities were ranked among the worst cities to be a single parent, including Houston, Atlanta, Detroit, Baltimore, Chicago, Dallas, Miami, Cincinnati, Cleveland and Columbus.

Houston ranked as the single worst place to be a single parent with a putrid score of 26.7. That includes a score of 0 for workplace protection, as families receive no paid family leave or protected time off for school events despite working an average of 40 hours a week.

MagnifyMoney is a personal finance site that aims to help people live financially healthier lives. The researchers limited the report to just the 100 largest metropolitan areas and gathered the data from the U.S. Census Bureau's 2017 American Community Survey five-year estimates.

Patch national staffer Dan Hampton contributed to this report.