Michigan ranks 9th-best state for living off-the-grid in 2021
(The Center Square) – Michigan was ranked the 9th-best state for living off-the-grid in 2021, according to an outdoor services website LawnStarter.
COVID-19 upended living many people’s living situations, sending many young people in cities packing to move back in with parents.
Relocation platform MyMove used change of address data from the United States Postal Service, which indicated 15.9 million people moved between February and July this year.
More than 110,000 people left high-populated cities, including New York City, Brooklyn, and Chicago, and instead opted to move to cities across Texas, the data showed.
LawnStarter ranked all 50 states and the District of Columbia across 20 factors, from the average per-acre cost of farmland to average monthly temperature and property tax, to create a scorecard for the best states to live off-the-grid in 2021.
Some took social distancing to the next level and moved to different states and cities with less population and cheaper rent, freed by work-from-home options.
Michigan ranked No. 9, beating out Iowa (10), Nebraska (11), and Florida (12).
The top five states were Kentucky, Washington, Missouri, South Carolina, and North Dakota.
The Wolverine state brought in a ranking of 66.07, with an infrastructure rank of 10, a feasibility rank of 10, and a safety rank of 10. However, Michigan tied for last with Vermont for the lowest potential for solar power.
Michigan scored a No. 10 in infrastructure, with a 43% of roads higher in poor or mediocre condition compared to Minnesota’s 32%.
Infrastructure includes potential for wind and solar power, phone coverage and road quality.
Cost rank was nearly identical in Minnesota at No. 28 and Michigan at No. 29. This cost ranking included the cost of an average acre of farmland, property taxes, and cost of living.
Michigan scored a No. 10 for safety, LawnStarter Managing Editor Jeff Herman said.
The safety ranking includes natural hazards, the number of rural health clinics per 1,000 square miles, the number of critical-access hospitals, and the crime rate for the state. Michigan had 37 critical-access hospitals.
The bottom five were the District of Columbia (51), Alaska (50), Nevada (49), New Jersey (48) and Arizona (47).
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