Georgia By The Numbers

This city has the most extreme poverty in Georgia

There are an estimated 39.5 million Americans living below the poverty line, which, in the lower 48 states, is an annual income threshold of $12,880 for an individual and $26,500 for a family of four (Alaska and Hawaii have a slightly higher threshold). Living in poverty can have serious consequences and impacts nearly every aspect of life -- and those problems can be compounded for those who are facing poverty while also living in very poor neighborhoods. Residents of poor neighborhoods often struggle with higher crime rates, limited employment opportunities, lower school quality, and poor health outcomes. For those living…

What are the safest cities in Georgia?

With reported murders up 64% compared to this time two years ago in Atlanta, SafeWise decided to look into the cities where Georgia residents can feel safe. SafeWise just released its 7th annual "50 Safest Cities in Georgia" report for 2021. To determine the safest cities in Georgia, Safewise analyzed the latest violent crime and property crime data from the FBI for each city. Milton was determined to be the safest city in the state with a violent crime rate of 0.4 violent crime incidents per 1,000 residents and a property crime rate of 7.3. Here’s a peek at the…

Atlanta named one of the top places to retire

Atlanta is one of the best places to retire, a new report by personal finance website WalletHub shows. The report, which was released Tuesday, ranked Atlanta the 10th-best retirement city among 180 U.S. cities across the country. Seven in 10 U.S. workers reported feeling at least somewhat confident they will have enough money to retire comfortably, but only 3 in 10 said they were "very confident, according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute's 2021 Retirement Confidence Survey. "The largest shares of retirees' expenditures are on housing, transportation, health care, food, entertainment, and taxes," William & Mary's Raymond A. Mason School of…

How pet-friendly are rental properties in Georgia?

67% of US households (around 85 million families) own a pet, and 43 million houses are occupied by renters. So, what if you need to relocate with your furry friend? New research from All About Cats has revealed the best states (& worst) and cities in the USA to find a pet-friendly rental property - Georgia has made the top 10, with 47.0% of properties allowing pets! You can see the full list of states and cities alongside % of available lets here:https://allaboutcats.com/lets-for-petsTop 10 Best States for Pet-Friendly Rentals RankStatePet Friendly LetsTotal Lets% Pet Friendly1Illinois2468412259.87%2Mississippi22943852.28%3New York63201319647.89%4Georgia1914407247.00%5North Carolina1765391745.06%6Tennessee895215641.51%7Indiana804205039.22%8Nevada494134436.76%9Alabama494135136.57%10Missouri877250635.00% Top 10 Worst States for…

Here’s how much it costs per year to drive in Georgia

Car prices are surging in the United States. Rising demand, in conjunction with a limited supply of new vehicles on dealer lots, has led to a 45% increase in the consumer price index for used vehicles since June 2020. Perhaps now more than ever, car buyers should bear in mind that the cost of vehicle ownership goes well beyond sticker price. These costs are not uniform across the country, however, and in some states, motorists can expect to spend thousands more per year than in others. Between insurance, fuel, and maintenance and repairs, the typical motorist in Georgia can expect…

Georgia’s Best County to live in revealed

The U.S. may have the largest economy in the world, but in other key measures indicative of quality of life, it is far from number one. Based on the United Nations Development Programme's Human Development Index, a tool used for gauging and comparing quality of life across geographies, the United States ranks as the 17th best country to live in worldwide. While quality of life across the U.S. as a whole trails over a dozen other nations, there are parts of the country that, if analyzed through the lens of the HDI, would rank at or near the top of the list…

Here’s how Georgia’s population has changed in the last 10 years

The United States, including Georgia, became more urban and more diverse during the last decade, according to U.S. Census results released Thursday. The first detailed data from the 2020 Census covering cities, counties and census blocks showed the concentration of Americans in the nation’s metropolitan areas increased from 84.3% in 2010 to 86.3% last year. Population growth in Georgia during the decade was limited primarily to the counties in metro Atlanta and along the coast. On the other hand, many of the counties in rural Georgia lost population between 2010 and 2020, including large swaths of South Georgia. That trend…

Over half of Georgia employees support mandatory vaccine disclosure

A new survey shows that more than half of Georgia employees think companies should require vaccine disclosures. Although there is no legal obligation to share your vaccination status with everyone who may ask, this information might be required in certain circumstances. In a similar way that schools ask for details about childhood vaccinations, companies might inquire about employees’ vaccine status as a matter of health and safety for other people who work in the workplace. Even though vaccinated employees are less likely to get seriously ill, it’s still possible for them to become infected with the coronavirus as they return to the workplace.…

This is Georgia’s worst county to live in

Life expectancy fell by 1.5 years in the United States in 2020. The decline, driven by the COVID-19 pandemic and the opioid crisis, represents the most pronounced regression in public health in the United States since World War II. While the most recent dip in life expectancy in the U.S. is alarming, there are many parts of the country where poor health outcomes and other socioeconomic hardships have long been the norm. Using an index of three measures -- life expectancy at birth, bachelor's degree attainment, and poverty rate -- 24/7 Wall St. identified the worst counties to live in…

Here’s where Georgia ranks for obesity

The obesity epidemic in the U.S. is a major health issue, and it's getting worse. The current national adult obesity rate is 29.7%, but almost half of adults are projected to be obese, not just overweight, by 2030, according to Harvard researchers estimates published in December 2019 in the New England Journal of Medicine. While the country as a whole is facing an obesity crisis, the problem is much more pronounced in some states. Georgia is the state with the 21st highest adult obesity rate in the U.S. About 32.3% of adult residents report a body mass index of 30…

Where did Georgia rank in overdose deaths in 2020?

More than 93,000 people died of drug overdoses in the U.S. in 2020, a nearly 30% surge from 2019 and the most ever recorded in a single year, according to recently released data by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Addiction experts say the increase in overdose deaths was largely driven by the increased presence of the powerful synthetic opioid fentanyl in the U.S. Other contributors include problems related to the coronavirus pandemic, such as increased isolation and job losses. Georgia is the state with the 11th fewest drug overdose deaths per capita in 2020. There were 17 fatal…

This Georgia community is shrinking the fastest in the state

The U.S. population grew by just 0.35% between July 2019 and July 2020, the smallest annual growth rate in well over a century. Driven in part by restrictions on immigration and a declining birth rate, stagnant population growth may have profound and far reaching consequences -- including reduced economic growth, stagnanting home values, and fewer workers to support an aging population. This trend is by no means unique to last year. Over the past decade, cities and towns across the country have reported rapid population decline. The unincorporated community of Druid Hills has the fastest shrinking population in Georgia, according…

Georgia’s best city to live in revealed

About one in every five American workers whose job could be performed remotely worked from home before the COVID-19 pandemic. That share jumped to nearly three in four following the abrupt closure of offices nationwide, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted in October 2020. For millions of Americans, the shift to remote work is now permanent, and the new dynamic means they are no longer tied to a specific city for their job and can choose a place to live based on other factors, including quality of life -- which varies considerably in the United States. Affordability, access…

Where does Georgia rank in childhood obesity?

The percentage of children and adolescents who are not just overweight but obese has more than tripled since the 1970s, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. By 2018, nearly one in five children between the age of 2 and 19 were obese. Childhood obesity is defined as a BMI at or above the 95th percentile for children and teens of the same age and sex. Of the 42 states for which there is data on adolescent obesity, Georgia is the state with the 7th largest share of high school students who are obese at 18.3%. In comparison,…

Which Georgia city is the best place to retire in the United States?

Cumming is the best place to retire in the United States, according to a study released by a New York-based financial technology company. The Forsyth County seat north of Atlanta scored 100 on SmartAsset’s index of best places to retire based on tax burden, access to medical care and opportunity for recreation and social activity. Cumming narrowly beat out Naples, Fla., which scored 98.4 on the index. Naples’ tax burden of 13.6% was lower than Cumming’s 16.5%, based on state and local income and sales tax rates. However, Cumming significantly bested Naples in the access to medical care category, with…