10 dangerous cities where you shouldn’t buy a house, no matter the price

While crime rates have fallen sharply over the past few decades, according to the most recent data available from the Bureau of Justice Statistics and the FBI (via Pew Research), there are still places in our country where violent and nonviolent crime rates are significantly higher above average.

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GOBankingRates examined data from City-Data.com, which uses both government and private sources to generate a crime index score for each city. According to a 2024 MoneyGeek study based on FBI statistics, GOBankingRates also examined the cost of crime “to estimate the cost of crime for each city.”

Based on all of that, here are 10 cities you might not want to call home without investing in a few strong castles.

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Kansas City is known for its great barbecue and jazz, but also for its crime: the per capita crime cost is $6,398, more than 17 times higher than the country’s safest major city, Irvine, where the crime cost is $364 US dollars lie. The City Data Crime Index score is also intimidating at 675.1.

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Known for its breweries and beer-making history, Milwaukee may be a great place to grab a beer, but it can be pricey. The city’s crime cost is $7,029 and the City Data Crime Index score is 663.2.

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According to MoneyGeek’s analysis, Cleveland, home of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, is also in the spotlight on this list because of its high crime cost of $7,397. Its City Data Crime Index score of 752.9 is similarly weak.

Arkansas’ capital and largest community, Little Rock, isn’t all that low when it comes to crime costs: it’s $7,781 and has a City Data Crime Index score of 796.9.

Buy a home in Baltimore and things might not be so pleasant, with the per capita crime cost at $8,160. This corresponds to a City Data Crime Index score of 656.6.

Home to King of Rock & Roll Elvis Presley’s Graceland, Memphis is still a hotbed for top blues, soul and other music. However, it is not entirely harmonious. The cost of crime is a high $9,056 and the City Data Crime Index score is a whopping 1,022.4.

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Nicknamed the “Motor City” due to its history in the automobile industry, Detroit is also known for its poor crime statistics. In fact, MoneyGeek puts the cost of crime at $9,281, while City-Data reports a crime index score of 847.

With its iconic Gateway Arch and vibrant city culture, St. Louis appears to be more impressive than its crime statistics suggest, with a crime rate of $11,055 and a City Data Crime Index score of 896.4.

With its rich culinary, musical and melting pot culture, what’s not to love about the Big Easy? Well, for one thing, there are the crime statistics. With a crime rate of $11,094 and a City Data Crime Index score of 763.8, the Big Easy seems pretty tough.

Birmingham has the dubious honor of having the highest crime costs of any major city in the country, at $11,392 – more than 31 times higher than Irvine. Birmingham also has a City Data Crime Index score of 738.1, which is almost three times the national average of 246.1.

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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 10 Dangerous Cities Where You Shouldn’t Buy a Home, No Matter the Price