What to Know
- Wallethub has ranked New York City as one of the worst-run cities in the U.S. for the third time in a row
- New York placed 146 out of 150 with the city's overall score, which is actually an improvement from 148th place for the past two years
- A College of Idaho professor said one of the key factors that makes or breaks a city is the quality of its leaders, such as de Blasio
While Mayor Bill de Blasio has been vying for votes on the presidential campaign trail, Wallethub has ranked New York City as one of the worst-run cities in the U.S. for the third time in a row.
The website conducted a study in which it compared 150 of the largest cities across six categories: financial stability, education, infrastructure and pollution, health, safety and economy. The study averaged these metrics to create a “quality of city services” score, which was then divided by the total city budget per capita for the rankings.
New York placed 146 out of 150 with the city’s overall score, which is actually an improvement from the ranking of 148 for the past two years. The city placed 16th for quality of city services but 148th for total budget per capita.
Even though New York had a decent quality of city services score, ranking within the top seven cities for safety and health, it placed 60th for education, 80th for financial stability and 114th for economy.
One of the city’s most notable scores was for highest long-term debt outstanding per capita, for which New York tied for 145th place with San Francisco, Chicago, Atlanta, Nashville and Washington, D.C.
College of Idaho professor Kerry Hunter said one of the key factors that makes or breaks a city is the quality of its leaders, such as de Blasio.
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According to Hunter, the best-run cities are those with the best leaders, especially those that are able to understand the city’s unique issues and implement solutions. Conversely, a city’s lack of strong leadership may be reflected in its score.
Yale Law School professor David Schliecher said one of the most important issues facing cities across the country is housing, and New York has one of the biggest housing problems.
“In many rich cities like San Francisco and New York, local governments have used their regulatory powers to make it difficult for private developers to build enough housing to meet demand,” Schliecher said.
The result? Sky-high prices for those looking for a new home or struggling to stay in their current one. All the while, property owners benefit from the gains of economic growth, Schliecher said.
The professor advised that New York allow new buildings to accommodate people who would like to move in, particularly by allowing new construction in high-demand areas.
