The challenges facing military veterans as they reenter civilian life has been well documented, drawing additional attention to mental health issues such as the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder and the inadequate resources of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs.
On Monday, personal finance site WalletHub released a report ranking the U.S. cities where veterans may find it easier to reacclimate. The site narrowed down its list by considering only the 100 most-populated cities in the U.S. and then scored them based on characteristics relevant to veterans, such as percentage of military skill-related jobs, veteran unemployment rate, veteran population, and number of VA-benefits administration facilities.
Irvine, Calif., a city of 240,000 that’s 40 miles south of Los Angeles came out on top, thanks in part to its high veteran income growth and its low percentage of veterans living below the poverty line. At the bottom of the list, was Detroit, with one of the highest percentages of veterans living below the poverty line.
