INDUSTRY VOICES
BEST STATES
rates, GDP growth, migration, new businesses and more • NEW HAMPSHIRE FOR OPPORTUNITY, which measures poverty, housing affordability, and equality for women and minorities • IOWA FOR INFRASTRUCTURE, including quality of bridges, public transport, power grids and broadband • MAINE FOR CRIME & CORRECTIONS, based on public safety and fairness and quality of prison systems • UTAH FOR FISCAL STABILITY, which tracks government credit ratings, liquidity, pension fund liability and more • NORTH DAKOTA FOR QUALITY OF LIFE, including air quality, level of pollution, voter participation and social support. U.S. News creates this report to assist the federal government as it makes important decisions on how much responsibility to give states in deciding upon spending and policy making. This comprehensive list is an invaluable resource for state trends and developments. It is especially useful in understanding the strengths of each state and spotting areas they can improve upon to better accommodate their citizens’ needs. WHAT MATTERS MOST TO RESIDENTS According to U.S. News analysts, the report weighs some considerations more heavily than others based on how survey respondents say they weigh their satisfaction with their current state. For example, health care and education are more import- ant to the general population than anything else, so the report weighs them most heavily. This is why Iowa ranked higher than second place Minnesota even though Minnesota had higher quality of life and opportunity rankings than Iowa. Iowa ranked first in infrastructure and third in healthcare. According to the survey, residents value local economic health, opportunities, and state infrastructure just behind ed- ucation and health care. Crime and corrections follows that, and then government fiscal stability and quality of life. Iowa ranked fifth for education, fourth for opportunity, and ninth for quality of life, but still rose to the top of the list thanks to those solid rankings and the top ranking for infrastructure. Massachusetts (8th overall) ranked first for education, while Hawaii (17th) ranked first for healthcare, but ranked in the lower half of the list of states for education, infrastructure, fiscal stability, and quality of life. These scores are derived through a series of surveys that interview, cumulatively, more than 30,000 adults from all 50
MY TAKE ONWHAT “BEST STATES" MEANS FOR INVESTORS
U.S. states. “The survey results were weighted to be represen- tative of the country’s population across all ages, genders, eth- nicities, and household incomes,” U.S. News analysts wrote. The team noted that because of the strict guidelines used to govern the caliber of the data used in the report, “some of the desired metrics were not available, such as government corruption, which is not regularly updated.” • “For example, city municipalities might partner with land trusts to build affordable housing near transit so residents can get to work, or extend light rails to ru- ral communities to expand affordable housing units. As a certified delegate spokesman and elite board member of NAWRB, finding solutions to bridge the gap for homeless women with children is crucial.” From certified delegate spokeswoman and NAWRB board member, active real estate investor, real estate business owner, Roz Booker. “ Real estate investors have a leading edge by using the Best States Ranking. Investors need market drivers from reliable sources of what matters to cit- izens in states where they live. Best States metrics take into account updated trends and developments making it a must-read source for anyone interest- ed in investing in real estate. Investors will know the strengths of each state and identify areas of improvement to better accommodate the needs of future residents or to start the conversation with government and state entities to invoke change to solve housing needs.
“Best States” Rankings Released for 2018 HOW STATES CARE FOR THEIR RESIDENTS MAY AFFECT YOUR INVESTMENT STRATEGY.
by Roz Booker and Desiree Patno
I
owa, a Midwest farm state in the heart of the United States and host of the winter caucuses, takes first place in U.S. News’ recent “Best States” rankings, which assess and rank how well states perform in serving their citizens’ needs. The study considers health care, education, opportunities, the state’s economy, infrastructure, crime and correction, fiscal stability, and quality of life. Iowa scored highly in infrastruc- ture and healthcare, which are among the top stated priorities of the general public. Knowing how a state ranks in serving their citizens’ needs in these eight major categories could change real estate inves- tors’ strategies. The development of an area increases the val- ue of living in that specific area. For example, U.S. News’ Best States Ranking of states in healthcare and education proves that citizens with higher education levels are healthier than individuals with lower levels of education. Educated citizens make better healthcare choices and can afford better quality healthcare. Since these factors directly affect how desirable a location will be to homeowners and tenants, investors should be aware of how their markets measure up in these areas. One of the most important aspects of real estate investing is infrastructure. The ability to attract people to an area that TOP PRIORITIES HEALTHCARE & EDUCATION AFFECT HOUSEHOLD DECISION-MAKING
gives them suitable transportation, for example, increases the prospects for real estate investment and economically improves an entire region. Commuters feel comfortable living in areas with access to good paying jobs. Real estate investors want to attract end users to rental or purchase properties in areas with great infrastructure. An area without sufficient infrastructure may be unattractive to their clients, thus affect- ing investors’ bottom line profits. THE BREAKDOWN Minnesota took second place in the rankings behind Iowa, as it ranked highly in terms of quality of life and opportunity for its citizens: second and third place, respectively. The re- maining states that comprise the Top 10 include Utah, North Dakota, New Hampshire, Washington, Nebraska, Massachu- setts, Vermont, and Colorado. The following states ranked first by category: • HAWAII FOR HEALTHCARE, including access, affordabili- ty, quality and health outcomes for citizens • MASSACHUSETTS FOR EDUCATION, which considers preschool, grades K-12 and higher education • COLORADO FOR ECONOMY, tracking unemployment
Roz Booker is a certified delegate spokeswoman & board member of NAWRB and the owner of certified women-owned business Arbrook Realty. She may be reached at Roz@ArbrookRealty.com or www.ArbrookRealty.com.
Desiree Patno is the CEO of NAWRB, Women in the Housing & Real Estate Ecosystem. Learn more at http://www.nawrb.com.
92 | think realty magazine :: april 2018
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