Two Texas Cities Ranked Among ‘Worst’ In America

A new report has ranked two places in Texas among the 50 worst places to live in America, but take note of several caveats. Researchers at 24/7 Wall St. published the dubious rankings Monday. The list was based on a weighted index of more than two dozen measures across four categories: affordability, economy, quality of life and community.

The report notably excludes places with fewer than 8,000 residents and only took the top-ranking city in a given county. It also doesn’t include any sort of happiness survey, so take that information as you will.

The list includes cities, towns, villages, boroughs and Census-designated places. In Texas, Bellmead and Robstown made the list. Here’s what the authors found:

Bellmead

• Population: 10,315
• Poverty rate: 26.6 percent
• 2017 violent crimes per 100,000 people: 2,305
• Median home value: $70,000

Robstown

• Population: 11,546
• Poverty rate: 35.1 percent
• 2017 violent crimes per 100,000 people: 894
• Median home value: 54,300

There’s no such thing as a perfect city, but some appear to be far worse off than others, the authors noted. Some cities like New York may have a great job market, but residents lead a lower quality of life due to the exorbitant costs of living. Similarly, a city where you get more bang for your buck will also perform poorly in the rankings if residents are significantly more likely to become a victim of violent crime. Such is the case in Houston.

The “worst’ city in America is Mendota, located in Fresno County, California, or so says the study. Half of Mendota households earn less than $27,500 a year and about 50 percent of residents live below the poverty line. To boot, the violent crime rate in 2017 was 646 per 100,000 people — among the top 25 percent — and fewer than 2 percent of adults have a bachelor’s degree, the smallest share of any American city.

“The widespread financial insecurity is partially attributable to a lack of jobs. The Census estimates that an average of 15.4 percent of the city’s labor force were unemployed in the last five years, the highest unemployment rate of any U.S. city and more than triple the comparable 4.1 percent national rate,” the authors noted.

The 50 worst cities on the list were spread among just 15 states, but were overwhelming located in the South and West. They tended to have high crime rates, widespread poverty, weak job markets and little entertainment options or cultural attractions. Here are the 10 “worst” cities to live in:

1. Mendota, California
2. Florida City, Florida
3. California City, California
4. Makaha, Hawaii
5. Highland Park, Michigan
6. Bessemer, Alabama
7. Bastrop, Louisiana
8. Waianae, Hawaii
9. Anniston, Alabama
10. Avenal, California

Factors that received a full weight in the rankings include ratio of the median home value to the median income; unemployment rate; poverty rate; food insecurity rate; mortality rate; distance from city center to the nearest hospital; average travel time to work; and violent crime rate;

Click here to read the full methodology.

Patch national staffer Dan Hampton contributed to this report.

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