The prevalence of women in the workforce has grown tremendously over the past few decades, and as a result, working moms have gained buying power in the real estate market. However, as a recent study from WalletHub pointed out, some states are more accommodating to working moms than others.
In its study, the personal finance website looked at the cost, quality and availability of child care; the professional environment as it pertains to women (i.e. gender pay gap, ratio of female to male executives, median salary, female unemployment rate, etc.); and average afforded work-life balance, which weighed policies on parental leave, as well as the length of the average work week and commute.
Florida, unfortunately, is one of the states on the unaccommodating side of the spectrum. Its “child care” and “work-life balance” rankings were among the worst in the country – No. 37 and No. 44, respectively. And while the state’s array of professional opportunities available to women put it among the top half of states nationwide (No. 24), it wasn’t enough to save Florida from being ranked the No. 40 best state for working moms.
See how our state compares below:
| Overall Rank | State | Total Score | Child Care Rank | Professional Opportunities Rank | Work-Life Balance Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vermont | 63.93 | 1 | 2 | 11 |
| 2 | Minnesota | 60.23 | 8 | 4 | 7 |
| 3 | Connecticut | 58.17 | 12 | 37 | 1 |
| 4 | North Dakota | 56.34 | 7 | 16 | 14 |
| 5 | Massachusetts | 56.26 | 2 | 21 | 30 |
| 6 | Illinois | 54.42 | 9 | 13 | 22 |
| 7 | Wisconsin | 54.33 | 15 | 26 | 10 |
| 8 | Colorado | 53.64 | 10 | 14 | 27 |
| 9 | Kansas | 53.15 | 5 | 27 | 21 |
| 10 | New Jersey | 53.12 | 3 | 46 | 17 |
| 11 | Maine | 52.96 | 24 | 12 | 8 |
| 12 | Iowa | 52.81 | 22 | 11 | 13 |
| 13 | Tennessee | 52.48 | 11 | 9 | 36 |
| 14 | Virginia | 52.06 | 6 | 7 | 48 |
| 15 | Utah | 51.88 | 14 | 50 | 6 |
| 16 | Kentucky | 51.09 | 4 | 45 | 32 |
| 16 | Montana | 51.09 | 30 | 36 | 5 |
| 18 | New Hampshire | 51.07 | 16 | 10 | 34 |
| 19 | Washington | 50.13 | 32 | 15 | 9 |
| 20 | Nebraska | 50.08 | 29 | 8 | 19 |
| 21 | Rhode Island | 49.92 | 33 | 43 | 4 |
| 22 | Oregon | 49.82 | 40 | 30 | 2 |
| 23 | Delaware | 49.33 | 19 | 6 | 46 |
| 24 | Maryland | 48.86 | 13 | 5 | 51 |
| 25 | South Dakota | 48.79 | 28 | 19 | 18 |
| 26 | Wyoming | 48.3 | 18 | 49 | 15 |
| 27 | Ohio | 48.08 | 20 | 41 | 20 |
| 28 | Hawaii | 47.95 | 44 | 3 | 16 |
| 29 | Indiana | 47.75 | 23 | 33 | 26 |
| 30 | North Carolina | 47.64 | 21 | 25 | 35 |
| 31 | Arkansas | 47.02 | 26 | 20 | 31 |
| 32 | California | 46.75 | 47 | 18 | 3 |
| 33 | Texas | 45.7 | 17 | 38 | 42 |
| 34 | Missouri | 44.87 | 27 | 29 | 38 |
| 35 | Michigan | 44.78 | 34 | 31 | 29 |
| 36 | Oklahoma | 44.68 | 25 | 39 | 37 |
| 37 | District of Columbia | 44.5 | 41 | 1 | 50 |
| 38 | Pennsylvania | 43.28 | 36 | 35 | 33 |
| 39 | New York | 42.52 | 35 | 22 | 43 |
| 40 | Florida | 41.41 | 37 | 24 | 44 |
| 41 | West Virginia | 40.84 | 42 | 42 | 28 |
| 42 | New Mexico | 40.69 | 46 | 40 | 23 |
| 43 | Georgia | 40.43 | 31 | 32 | 49 |
| 44 | Idaho | 39.84 | 51 | 17 | 12 |
| 45 | Mississippi | 39.59 | 38 | 44 | 41 |
| 46 | Arizona | 37.5 | 45 | 34 | 47 |
| 47 | Alaska | 37.37 | 50 | 28 | 25 |
| 48 | Louisiana | 36.97 | 48 | 47 | 24 |
| 49 | South Carolina | 36.88 | 43 | 48 | 39 |
| 50 | Alabama | 35.94 | 39 | 51 | 40 |
| 51 | Nevada | 34.63 | 49 | 23 | 45 |