Massachusetts Has 10 Of The WORST U.S. Cities For This Hazard

Not to get too melodramatic, Massachusetts, but it amazes me that something that contributes to several thousands of deaths every year is still so common in many of our homes and schools.

Get our free mobile app

Believe it or not, folks, approximately 35% of homes in the United States contain lead paint! With well over 400,000 deaths every year in this country linked to lead contamination, Paint Gnome decided to look into which American cities are at the most risk of lead paint exposure.

Are you ready for this surprising statistic? TEN of the TOP 50 most lead paint-vulnerable cities in America are located in Massachusetts! I don't know about you, but that statistic just blows me away!

Before we delve into which cities in the Commonwealth made the rankings, let's find out how Paint Gnome came up with their findings. Paint Gnome compared the 500 biggest cities in the United States based on 2 main categories.

First, Paint Gnome looked at the number and share of homes built during the years when lead paint use was common. Second, they looked at each city's access to certified lead-based paint inspection, risk assessment, abatement firms, and other metrics.

Without further ado, here are 2024's Top 10 Most Lead Paint-Vulnerable Cities, according to Paint Gnome:

Cicero - Illinois
Chicago - Illinois
Buffalo - New York
Reading - Pennsylvania
St. Louis - Missouri
Philadelphia - Pennsylvania
Detroit - Michigan
Somerville - Massachusetts
Cleveland - Ohio
Scranton - Pennsylvania

You may think that Massachusetts did pretty well with only one city in the top 10. Well, think again. According to Paint Gnome, every city representing Massachusetts landed in the top 100, with 10 Bay State cities in the Top 50! Here they are with their respective rankings:

Somerville (#8)
New Bedford (#21)
Newton (#24)
Lynn (#27)
Boston (#29)
Lawrence (#30)
Springfield (#40)
Fall River (#41)
Worcester (#46)
Lowell (#47)

That's pretty telling, isn't it? If you've never had a lead paint inspection performed on your home, you may want to get it done. You can find out more cool info, including the American cities that are the least lead paint-vulnerable, by visiting Paint Gnome's website here.

LOOK: States With the Most New Small Businesses Per Capita

To find the top 20 states with the most new small businesses per capita, Simply Business analyzed the Census Bureau’s Business Formation Statistics from August 2020 to July 2021.

Gallery Credit: Eliza Siegel

LOOK: Here are the 50 best beach towns in America

Every beach town has its share of pluses and minuses, which got us thinking about what makes a beach town the best one to live in. To find out, Stacker consulted data from WalletHub, released June 17, 2020, that compares U.S. beach towns. Ratings are based on six categories: affordability, weather, safety, economy, education and health, and quality of life. The cities ranged in population from 10,000 to 150,000, but they had to have at least one local beach listed on TripAdvisor. Read the full methodology here. From those rankings, we selected the top 50. Readers who live in California and Florida will be unsurprised to learn that many of towns featured here are in one of those two states.

Keep reading to see if your favorite beach town made the cut.

Gallery Credit: Keri Wiginton

LOOK: Here is the richest town in each state

Just saying the names of these towns immediately conjures up images of grand mansions, luxury cars, and ritzy restaurants. Read on to see which town in your home state took the title of the richest location and which place had the highest median income in the country. Who knows—your hometown might even be on this list.

Gallery Credit: Meagan Drillinger