3 Key Takeaways for New York
- New York ranks #1 in the nation for housing health risk, scoring 93.10 out of 100, the only state in the country to clear 80 points and standing nearly 14 points clear of second-place Massachusetts (79.20).
- Nearly 1 in 3 New York homes carries a lead exposure risk, a 31.7% rate that is the highest of any state, roughly double the national average of 15.9%, and enough to earn New York a perfect 50 out of 50 on lead risk.
- An estimated 1,687,500 New York homes have serious structural problems, while approximately 2,377,500 face potential lead contamination, among the largest absolute totals of any state in the country.
Home is where safety should begin; yet for a significant share of New York residents, the very structures around them tell a different story. From century-old walk-ups in its dense cities to aging farmhouses across its rural counties, generations of families have lived in homes that were built for another era and never fully brought into the present. New York has long carried the weight of one of the oldest and most heavily occupied housing stocks in the nation, built early, built densely, and never fully renewed.
The study, conducted by Besroi Roofing & Siding, analyzes all 50 U.S. states on a composite Housing Health Risk Score (out of 100), combining two equally weighted measures: the percentage of homes with severe structural problems and the percentage of homes at risk of lead exposure. Each measure is scored out of 50 points using a proportional index, with the highest-risk state in each category anchoring the scale. Data is sourced from America’s Health Rankings.
Table 1: New York State Profile
|
Metric |
New York |
National Average |
|---|---|---|
|
Overall Housing Health Risk Score (out of 100) |
93.10 |
N/A |
|
National Rank |
#1 of 50 |
N/A |
|
% of Homes With Severe Structural Problems |
22.5% |
15.2% |
|
% of Homes With Lead Exposure Risk |
31.7% |
15.9% |
|
Severe Problems Score (out of 50) |
43.10 |
N/A |
|
Lead Risk Score (out of 50) |
50.00 |
N/A |
|
Estimated Homes With Severe Problems |
~1,687,500 |
N/A |
|
Estimated Homes With Lead Risk |
~2,377,500 |
N/A |
|
Lead Risk National Rank |
#1 of 50 |
N/A |
Table 2: Top 10 States by Housing Health Risk Score
|
Rank |
State |
% Homes With Severe Problems |
% Homes With Lead Risk |
Housing Health Risk Score (out of 100) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1 |
New York |
22.5% |
31.7% |
93.10 |
|
2 |
Massachusetts |
17.3% |
29.2% |
79.20 |
|
3 |
Rhode Island |
16.3% |
28.6% |
76.34 |
|
4 |
California |
25.8% |
16.4% |
75.29 |
|
5 |
New Jersey |
19.8% |
22.5% |
73.42 |
|
6 |
Connecticut |
17.4% |
25.3% |
73.24 |
|
7 |
Pennsylvania |
13.8% |
27.6% |
69.97 |
|
8 |
Illinois |
15.6% |
23.4% |
66.79 |
|
9 |
Hawaii |
26.1% |
10.1% |
65.93 |
|
10 |
Vermont |
15.3% |
21.5% |
63.22 |
Insight: New York tops the national ranking by a commanding margin. Its 93.10 score sits nearly 14 points above second-place Massachusetts, by far the widest gap between any two consecutive states in the top 10, and it is the only state in the country whose score exceeds 80 points.
Table 3: New York vs. the 10 Lowest-Risk States
|
Rank |
State |
% Homes With Severe Problems |
% Homes With Lead Risk |
Housing Health Risk Score (out of 100) |
Gap vs. New York (Score Points) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1 |
New York |
22.5% |
31.7% |
93.10 |
N/A |
|
41 |
Tennessee |
13.3% |
11.2% |
43.14 |
49.96 |
|
42 |
Arizona |
17.1% |
6.2% |
42.54 |
50.56 |
|
43 |
Idaho |
13.2% |
10.9% |
42.48 |
50.62 |
|
44 |
Mississippi |
14.3% |
9.5% |
42.38 |
50.72 |
|
45 |
Georgia |
15.2% |
8.4% |
42.37 |
50.73 |
|
46 |
North Carolina |
14.2% |
9.4% |
42.03 |
51.07 |
|
47 |
Alabama |
13.1% |
10.7% |
41.97 |
51.13 |
|
48 |
Utah |
13.4% |
9.6% |
40.81 |
52.29 |
|
49 |
South Carolina |
14.1% |
8.4% |
40.26 |
52.84 |
|
50 |
Arkansas |
13.2% |
9.2% |
39.80 |
53.30 |
Insight: New York scores up to 53 points higher than the nation’s safest states, reflecting a housing risk profile that is in a different category entirely. The bottom 10 states average a lead risk rate of just 9.35%, less than a third of New York’s 31.7%, pointing to lead exposure as the single greatest factor separating New York from the country’s lowest-risk housing environments.
Methodology
Data for this analysis were drawn from America’s Health Rankings, which aggregates state-level public health and housing indicators using federal survey data. The severe housing problems metric captures the share of occupied housing units with at least one of four conditions: incomplete kitchen facilities, incomplete plumbing, more than one occupant per room, or housing cost burden exceeding 50% of household income. The lead risk metric reflects the estimated share of housing units built before 1980 that have children present, weighted by the probability of lead exposure based on housing age and type. Each metric was converted into a 50-point proportional score, and the two scores were summed to produce a final Housing Health Risk Score out of 100. All 50 states were ranked from highest (greatest risk) to lowest.
Data Sources
Severe Housing Problems Data:
https://www.americashealthrankings.org/explore/measures/severe_housing_problems/AL
Lead Risk Data:
https://www.americashealthrankings.org/explore/measures/housing_leadrisk/AL
Research Datasheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/17DLzqN0U04M3qU-ppJv86i_aOCAq1LCw0vKalltm04A/edit?gid=82006895#gid=82006895
Study By: https://besroiroofing.com/
About Besroi Roofing & Siding
Besroi Roofing & Siding is a family-owned exterior contracting company serving Western New York since 1960, with expertise in roofing, siding, gutters, windows, and doors for residential and commercial clients. With more than six decades of experience, the company provides trusted, service-driven insights that support public understanding of housing, property maintenance, and home safety issues.
