Hawaii still ranked among the best places to live

You hear all about the rising cost of housing.

You hear all about the increasing number of homeless.

You hear all about the lack of good-paying jobs and low wages.

You hear all about climate change and rising sea levels.

And you hear all about more people leaving than coming.

You hear all this about Hawaii.

So, you might think that the Aloha State is sliding down the lists of great places to live.

But you would be wrong.

Hawaii, no surprise to those who live here, continues to be ranked as one of the best places to live.

Hawaii, per this latest report by financial news and opinion website 247wallst.com, ranks as the fourth best state to live in in the country.

24/7 Wall St. created its own index using the United Nations Development Programme Human Development Index, or HDI, in order to rank the best and worst states to live in. 24/7’s index consists of three measures: life expectancy at birth, bachelor’s degree attainment, and poverty.

“After ranking states based on these criteria, some clear geographic patterns emerge,” 24/7 Wall St. says. “For example, all but one state in the Northeast ranks among the top 25 states, while nine out of the 10 lowest-ranking states on this list are in the South. This is partially the result of higher educational attainment rates in the Northeastern United States — not only was education included in the index, but also better-educated adults tend to have healthier lifestyles and higher incomes, which are reflected in the index’s other measures of poverty and life expectancy.”

The top three states to live were Massachusetts, Colorado and New Jersey.

The worst states to call home per this report were Mississippi, West Virginia and Louisiana.

Here’s what it had to say about Hawaii, which it ranked as the fourth-best place to live:

w 10-year population change: +9.7% (11th highest);

w 2018 unemployment: 2.4% (the lowest);

w Poverty rate: 8.8% (2nd lowest);

w Life expectancy at birth: 82.2 years (the longest).

It went on to say:

“People living in Hawaii are less likely to face serious financial hardship than the vast majority of Americans. Just 8.8% of state residents live below the poverty line, the smallest share of any state other than New Hampshire, and well below the national poverty rate of 13.1%. The state’s relative prosperity is likely due in part to its strong job market. An average of just 2.4% of Hawaii’s labor force was out of work in 2018, the lowest unemployment rate among states and well below the 3.9% national rate.

“Hawaii is also growing rapidly in terms of population. In the last decade, the number of people living in the state climbed by 9.7%, outpacing the 6.6% national population growth rate.”

That all sounds good. But sometimes there’s an easier way to explain why people love living in Hawaii, and that is, there’s an awful lot to be said for sunshine, beaches and aloha.