When couples are eager to start a family of their own, they take certain aspects of life into consideration.  Like where the best school districts are located, affordable housing, and businesses around the area to form a stable career.

There's a reason why South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem is telling others to move to our state.  According to our friends over at WalletHub, it's one of the best states to raise a family!

WalletHub compared all 50 states based on 52 indicators of family-friendliness.  This data from WalletHub includes finding a state's median annual family income, unemployment rate, and yes affordable housing.

Based on WalletHub's findings, these are the top ten best states to raise a family:

  1. Massachusetts
  2. Minnesota
  3. North Dakota
  4. New York
  5. Vermont
  6. New Hampshire
  7. New Jersey
  8. Washington
  9. Connecticut
  10. Utah

Our neighboring state of Minnesota almost grabbed the top spot!  So why are they number two?  According to WalletHub, "Minnesota has the highest median annual family income (adjusted for cost of living), $85,473, which is 1.5 times higher than in New York, where it is lowest at $57,450."

Good ole' South Dakota was so close to cracking one of the top ten spots.  However, the state did land in the top 15 states on this survey.

When it comes to raising a family in South Dakota, the state sits at number 13 due to cost-efficient early child care and median family income.  WalletHub claims, "The lowest average annual cost of early childcare (as a share of median family income), 7.22 percent, which is 1.8 times lower than in Nebraska, where it is highest at 13.19 percent."

Some states that aren't the best places to raise a family include South Carolina, Arizona, and Nevada.

Click here to view more findings in the study and where other states rank on this survey.

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