Sorry, St. Lucie: County makes list of worst places in Florida to raise a family

Cheryl McCloud and Jennifer Sangalang, Treasure Coast Newspapers

Sorry, Treasure Coast — one study ranked St. Lucie County among the worst counties in Florida to raise a family. The vacation rental site Florida Rentals explored data from several sources — including the Bureau of Labor Statistics — to determine the best counties here for family living.

There are more than 22 million people living in Florida and 19 percent of them — more than 4 million — are under the age of 18, according to 2023 estimates from the U.S. Census. Factors considered for the study included:

  • Cost of living

  • Number of schools

  • Childcare costs

  • Crime index

  • Median home prices

Here's what Florida Rentals found.

Which Florida county was named worst place to raise a family?

Collier County was named the worst county to raise a family in Florida. The county has the worst healthy diet score out of all 67 counties, and has the second highest childcare costs, at $19.82 per hour on average, according to Florida Rentals.

Why did a Treasure Coast area rank low on list of worst places to raise a family in Florida?

In the Florida Rentals study, childcare costs helped determine the state's worst places to raise a family. St. Lucie was in the penultimate spot, with an index score of 47.12, compared with Collier County (No. 1 on the list), which had an index score of 42.45, a news release states. The study measured factors including childcare cost, educational attainment and crime rate.

Fort Pierce and Port St. Lucie are located in St. Lucie County, which boasts 21 miles of coast.

What are the Top 10 worst counties in Florida to raise a family?

  1. Collier County

  2. Monroe County

  3. Citrus County

  4. Highlands County

  5. Flagler County

  6. Columbia County

  7. Hernando County

  8. Putnam County

  9. St. Lucie County

  10. Miami-Dade County

What did the 'best, worst places to raise a family' study suggest about parts of Florida?

According to FloridaRentals:

Monroe County: Monroe has the third highest cost of living score and is one of the counties with the fewest number of families.

Citrus County: The county has the fourth-highest crime index score and the second-lowest employment rate, with 40.3% of over-16s currently employed.

Highlands County: Highlands has the third-lowest employment rate in Florida, with 67.40% of over-16s currently employed. The county also has the fourth-lowest percentage of people who have earned at least their high school diploma, at 87.2%. Flagler County: This county has the sixth-lowest employment rate, with 47.3% of over-16s currently employed, and the ninth-largest crime index score, at 3,032.

What were the 10 best counties to raise a family in Florida?

  1. Okaloosa County

  2. Santa Rosa County

  3. Alachua County

  4. Seminole County

  5. Clay County

  6. Brevard County

  7. St. Johns County

  8. Leon County

  9. Orange County

  10. Bay County

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Florida vacation rental site ranks worst, best counties to raise family

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