The 10 Worst Places To Live In Tennessee For 2023

The 10 Worst Places To Live In Tennessee For 2023

Welcome to Ripley, Tennessee, where more people are out of work than anywhere else in the state. 1 in 8.3 people is without a job, and families bring in a combined $35,634 a year.

Crime is the 15th highest in Tennessee, where you have a 1 in 32.3 chance of being the victim of a property crime, and every year, you have a 1 in 57 chance of being raped, attacked or murdered when you’re within Ripley city limits.

Plus, they’re completely isolated out here, What do you do for entertainment when you’re an hour north of the nearest Memphis suburbs?

Bolivar is named for a famous revolutionary, Simón Bolívar, the same guy who lends his name to the country of Bolivia. A revolution might not be necessary for this southeast Tennessee town, but it definitely could use some change.

Located about an hour and a half outside of Memphis, the economy of Bolivar resembles the proverbial dumpster fire. The unemployment rate checks in at an eye-popping 21.7%, while more than a quarter of the town lives below the poverty line.

There are some bright spots. The surrounding landscape can be breathtaking, including the nearby Hatchie National Wildlife Refuge.

Rockwood serves as the childhood home of Hollywood actress Megan Fox. It’s lucky she got out of town.

In a parallel universe, Megan is struggling with four kids in a town where 20% of the residents live below the poverty line. She’s also likely earning below $35,000 and worrying about a crime rate more than 140% above the national average. Suddenly, starring in a couple Transformers movies doesn’t seem so bad.

Still, it isn’t all bad in Rockwood. Watts Bar Lake is just to the south of town, offering parallel-universe Megan Fox amazing views and access to excellent water activities.

Covington is just down the road from Ripley. Here, the public schools are some of the least funded in the state. If you value a good education, this isn’t a place for you. Kids who attend Covington public schools see the 10th lowest spending levels in terms of per-student ratios and teacher to student ratios.

Crime is far above average here, and the unemployment rate is 7.6%, which is the 22nd highest in Tennessee. And, as you can imagine, many of the folks in Covington live at or below the poverty line.

Somewhere west of Knoxville along I-40 is the small city of Crossville, where you have a 1 in 10 chance of being robbed every year. If you’re passing through, lock your doors and don’t talk to strangers.

Folks in Crossville earn under $30,000 a year, and you can imagine, many live at or below the poverty line. And the public schools are in the bottom 10% when it comes to spending levels.

What makes it worse is the cost of living is higher here than is most of the other cities on this list. Meaning, owning a home here is really a lot harder. Who wants to overpay to live in’Crossville?

Humboldt has the second-highest unemployment rate in Tennessee, (9.1%), but the residents earn a little more each year. The average family brings in enough to live just above the poverty line, but overall, many people here are simply broke.

Homes go for an average of $76,000. That’s the 4th lowest in the state. Say what you want about ‘cheap living,’ the fact is, homes are priced by demand, and there’s no demand to live in Humboldt.

Other factors: Crime is the 13th worst in Tennessee, and schools here are far below the state average when it comes to support for students.

Humboldt is a short drive north of Jackson.

Come to Morristown for a taste of American History. Davy Crockett once ran a tavern in town. You can still see a recreation of the establishment at the Crockett Tavern Museum.

How about life in modern Morristown? Not so tasty. This community in the northeast part of the state, about an hour outside of Knoxville, has serious problems.

More than a quarter of the town lives below the poverty line. That comes as a result of a 8.4% unemployment rate and a $36,495 median income. Housing and education fall below expectations. Meanwhile, the crime rate more than doubles the national average.

Sweetwater is famous for its caves. Check out the Craighead Caverns, gateway to an underground lake known a the Lost Sea.

Life above ground doesn’t hold the same kind of adventure. Rather, day-to-day existence in Sweetwater might make you want to go hide in one of those darkened caverns. The town struggles with a 9.0% unemployment rate and a $37,721 median income.

Sitting along I-75, between Knoxville and Chattanooga in the east-central part of the state, Sweetwater also faces problems related to housing, education and crime.