What are the top 10 most affordable trans-friendly cities
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What are the top 10 most affordable trans-friendly cities?
On this Queer Money®, we’re sharing the top 10 most affordable trans-friendly cities in the U.S. on our affordable, LGBTQ+-friendly city series.
Duluth, Minnesota, comes in at #10. Duluth is a lower-cost city with above-average incomes. Minnesota ranks high on the Movement Advancement Project’s (MAP) Gender Identity Policy Score. Duluth is on the list of Most Protective States per Erin Reed of Erin in the Morning. It also ranked #5 in the Top 5 States to Be Transgender in 2023 and was an honorable mention in 2022, per Erin Reed. Duluth came in #3 for the most affordable, LGBTQ+-friendly city in Minnesota on Queer Money® episode #439.
Albany, New York, comes in at #9. Albany has the highest cost of living, at 104.1% above the national average. It also has the highest median and average incomes, at $63,000 and $77,000, respectively. New York has the highest state ranking for MAP’s Gender Identity Policy Score in our top 10. Currently, Albany is the Most Protective State, per Erin Reed. New York earned honorable mentions in 2022 and 2023 from Erin Reed’s Top 5 States to Be Transgender.
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, comes in at #8. Milwaukee has the highest home values at $288,000. It has the second-highest median and average incomes at $57,000 and $76,000, respectively. New York is the only state in the top 10 without a top rating by Erin in the Morning. It has been flagged as a low-risk state. Albany was the Winner of the Most Affordable Climate Ready Gay Cities on Queer Money® episode #495. Albany was also the winner of the Most Affordable, LGBTQ+ Friendly Cities in the Blue States on Queer Money® episode #497.
Racine, Wisconsin, comes in at #7. Racine has the lowest rents in the top 10 at $932 a month for a two-bedroom, two-bath apartment. Again, Wisconsin is the only state in the top 10 without a top rating by Erin in the Morning. It has been flagged as a low-risk state. Racine was the winner of the most affordable, LGBTQ+-friendly city in Wisconsin on the Queer Money® episode #385. Racine came in at #4 for the Most Affordable, LGBTQ+ Friendly Cities in Blue States, Queer Money® episode #497.
Baltimore, Maryland, came in at #6. It has the highest rent on this list, at $1,595 a month for a two-bedroom, two-bath apartment. Baltimore is on the list of the Most Protective States, per Erin in the Morning. Maryland was also an honorable mention in 2023 for Erin Reed’s Top 5 States for Transgenders to Live. Baltimore came in at #5 for Most Affordable, LGBTQ+ Friendly Cities for Dogs, Queer Money® episode #489.
Rockford, Illinois, came in at #5. Rockford has the second lowest rent at $948 a month for a two-bedroom, two-bath apartment. It has the lowest home value at $145,000. Rockford has the lowest cost of living at 79% and the lowest median and lowest average incomes at $43,000 and $55,000 respectively. Illinois is on the list of the Most Protective State per Erin Reed of Erin in the Morning. Rockford made the runner-up for the most affordable, LGBTQ+-friendly city in Illinois on Queer Money® episode #459.
Champaign, Illinois, came in at #4. Champaign came in the middle of the road for everything. Illinois made it on the list of the Most Protective State per Erin in the Morning. Champaign was the winner for the most affordable, LGBTQ+-friendly city in Illinois on Queer Money® episode #459.
It is worth noting that all of the 455 cities looked at used HRC’s MEI only if the city scored all the trans-specific points. They relied heavily on Erin in the Morning by Erin Reed. Erin’s Methodology was primarily qualitative, with a scoring-rubric element for the worst bills out there for transgender folks. The expert assessment of laws, which she claims she’s well equipped to do. Erin talks with activists on the ground in each state. An Anti-Trans Legislative Risk Assessment Map was used, and it was updated in February 2024. There will be a link in the show notes for those who’ve signed up for Queer Money® newsletter. All the cities have rents that are considerably less, and in some cases, half of the national average. All have home values considerably less, and in some cases 1/3, of the national average. Only 1 city came in with the cost of living above the national average.
We have 3 honorable mentions. Cleveland, Ohio, which came in at #14. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which came in at #15, and Chicago, Illinois, which came in at #29.
Buffalo, New York, came in at #3. Buffalo was in the middle of the road for everything. It did not get a 100% on the HRC MEI. It was missing an LGBTQ+ liaison in the Mayor’s office; however, it has all the other trans points we looked at. New York made it on the List of Most Protective States per Erin in the Morning. New York earned honorable mentions in 2022 and 2023 for Erin’s Top 5 States to Be Transgender.
Syracuse, New York, came in at #2. Syracuse came in the middle of the road for everything. It scored a 100 on the HRC MEI. New York came in #5 for the Top 5 Most Affordable, LGBTQ+ Friendly Cities in Blue States, Queer Money® episode #497.
Rochester, New York, came in at #1. Rochester has the second lowest cost of living on the list at 79.1% of the national average. Rochester has lots of accolades when it comes to transgender services and benefits. It has the highest MAP’s Gender Identity Policy Score. It was the winner for the most affordable, LGBTQ+-friendly city in New York on Queer Money® episode #419. It was the winner of Most Affordable, LGBTQ+ Friendly Cities for Singles, Queer Money® episode #491. New York came in at #2 for the Top 5 Most Affordable, LGBTQ+ Friendly Cities in Blue States, Queer Money® episode #497. NBC News highlighted Rochester, New York, for its inclusive services, including healthcare, at the city level for transgender folks.
If you’d like to see the data for this growing series, get the dynamic list of Affordable LGBTQ+ Friendly Cities in the U.S. here or click the link in your podcast player for a growing analysis.
For the resources and to connect with our guests, get the show notes at: https://queermoneypodcast.com/subscribe.
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