Florida: One of the Best Places to Raise a Family
• Florida has the tenth-lowest total crime rate based on FBI crime data recorded in 2023, with 3,712 per 100,000 people.
• The crime rate in Florida is 24% below the U.S. average.
• New Mexico is the most dangerous state to settle down with a total crime rate of 8,349 per 100,000 people.
New research has named the most dangerous and safest states to purchase property and settle down.
The study, conducted by property buying expert Eden Emerald Buyers Agent, analyzed FBI crime data for crimes against persons, property, and society for the most recent year available, 2023, to identify which states have the highest and lowest total crime rates.
According to the findings, Florida has the tenth-lowest total crime rate per 100,000 people at 3,868, which is 24% below the national average of 5,074 total crimes per 100,000 people.
The state recorded the ninth-lowest rate of total offenses against property with 2,172 per 100,000.
There were 208,111 crimes against property, including 115,881 incidents of larceny theft and 29,201 of destruction, damage, or vandalism.
Maine is the safest state to settle down, recording the lowest total crime rate of 3,093 per 100,000 people – 39% below the U.S. average.
The state recorded the second-lowest total offenses against property per 100,000 people and eighth-lowest total offenses against society, at 1,787 and 349, respectively.
24,943 crimes against property were recorded in Maine, with only 1,540 counts of burglary, breaking or entering. There were 4,875 crimes against society, 4,165 of which were drug or narcotic offenses.
Hawaii has the second-lowest total crime rate per 100,000 people at 3,144, which is 38% less than the U.S. average.
The state has the lowest total offenses against society at 204 per 100,000 people, and the fifth-lowest total offenses against persons, at 869 per 100,000 people.
There were 2,589 crimes against society recorded in Hawaii, including 1,843 drug or narcotic offenses, and 11,049 crimes against persons recorded, with 10,191 of these incidents of assault.
New Hampshire ranks third from the bottom, with 3,316 total crimes per 100,000 people – 35% below the national average.
The state recorded the third-lowest rate of total offenses against property per 100,000 people and the tenth-lowest rate of total offenses against persons per 100,000 people, at 1,831 and 1,017, respectively.
24,936 crimes against property were recorded in New Hampshire, with only 708 counts of burglary, breaking or entering, as well as 13,850 crimes against persons, including 12,162 incidents of assault.
At the other end of the scale, New Mexico has the highest total crime rate per 100,000 people at 8,349, which is 65% above the national average.
The state recorded the highest rate of total offenses against persons and total offenses against property in the U.S., at 2,212 and 5,259 per 100,000, respectively.
There were 41,726 crimes against persons, including 38,456 incidents of assault, and 99,183 crimes against property, with 25,850 of these categorized as destruction, damage, or vandalism.
Tennessee has the second-highest total crime rate per 100,000 people at 7,082 – 40% higher than the U.S. average.
The state has the fourth-highest rate of total offenses against persons, at 2,078 per 100,000 people, and the fifth-highest rate of total offenses against society, at 1,331 per 100,000 people.
148,027 crimes against persons were recorded in Tennessee, with 139,418 of these classified as assault, as well as 94,819 crimes against society, with 77,881 of these drug or narcotic offenses.
Nevada ranks third, with 6,959 total crimes per 100,000 people, which is 37% above the national average.
The state recorded the fifth-highest total crime rate for both offenses against persons and offenses against property, with 2,035 and 3,994 per 100,000 people, respectively.
There were 64,727 crimes against persons recorded, including 60,394 cases of assault, and 127,065 crimes against property, with 48,116 of these classified as larceny theft.
Commenting on the findings, Josh Roth, Chief Buyers Agent at Eden Emerald Buyers Agent, says,
“It appears that the less densely populated states, such as Maine and Hawaii, have lower total crime rates per 100,000 people and are considerably safer to settle down in compared to more populated areas.
“It’s interesting to see which types of crime are most prevalent, with assault, larceny theft, and drug or narcotic offenses proving to be some of the top offenses in both the safest and most dangerous states to settle down in.
“New Mexico recorded the highest rate for both assault offenses per 100,000 people and larceny theft per 100,000, at 2,039 and 2,059, respectively, however, North Dakota recorded the highest rate for drug or narcotic offenses per 100,000 people at 1,578.”
Sources: FBI Crime Data
