Reasons why New Jersey is the 3rd best place to live

An analysis by the website 247WallStreet.com found New Jersey is the third-best state country in which to reside.

Forget all of those jokes about high taxes and state residents not trusting water and air that we can't see. Editor Doug McIntyre says their analysis comes from federal information, the Census Bureau, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and crime information from the FBI and private sources like the University of Wisconsin.

Among other things, McIntyre says they found New Jersey has a very low poverty rate and the sixth-longest life expectancy.

The unemployment rate in New Jersey is around the national average.

"New Jersey has a very very low poverty rate and poverty is a good marker for a lot of things," he said. "It's a good marker for health ... access to good food, education."

McIntyre adds that some other Jersey positives are high average income and low crime rates.

Two other northeast states ranked in the top 5: Massachusetts at No. 1 and Connecticut No. 5.

McIntyre says in much of the northeast, there is good access to jobs and good access to hospitals, and there are good police forces.

The 247wallst.com top 10 best state to live in are:

1. Massachusetts
2. Colorado
3. New Jersey
4. Hawaii
5. Connecticut
6. Minnesota
7. Maryland
8. New Hampshire
9. Washington
10. Virginia

Joe Cutter is the senior news anchor on New Jersey 101.5