There’s just something about the cultural significance of New Orleans and the surrounding areas that just can’t be matched. People thought the Bayou State would never recover after Hurricane Katrina, but the toughness and grit down south allowed the local population to recover and thrive.
If you’ve visited the state of Louisiana, you’ve gotten a taste of how truly special it is. But just because the food and the people are unique, it doesn’t mean there aren’t still flaws to living there. Being a tourist is a lot different than being a resident, after all.
Life insurance companies in Louisiana are pretty affordable, which combats the poor health and job security in the area. The natural entertainment and amusements are some of the best in America as long as another hurricane doesn’t take you and your home down with it.
There are several positives and negatives that need to be weighed if you want to move to Louisiana, and we’ll discuss many of them here.
Pro: Entertainment Options and Cultural Attractions
Louisiana and New Orleans have a long and storied history. In fact, New Orleans has the second most historic houses in the U.S. according to the National Register of Historic Places. What does that mean exactly?
The homes in New Orleans have retained their original structure and period style from the time and nationality of the people who built them. That means there are a lot of French and Creole influences in the Bayou. If you desire to live somewhere that transports you back to a different time in U.S. history, New Orleans is as good as any city in the country.
There are a lot of musical choices and museums to visit in New Orleans, particularly in the jazz sector. Louisiana was the birthplace of many of the world’s greatest artists, including Louis Armstrong.
Everyone knows about Mardi Gras, which is the annual celebration of culture in New Orleans, but there are other outdoor activities that can be enjoyed outside of the city. There is quite a bit of sunny weather to take advantage of in the summer months, with a variety of areas to visit.
Fontainebleau State Park is one of the best locations to enjoy the sights and sounds of Louisiana’s outdoors. The park also encourages you to listen in on the tour guides who give history lessons, and the fun group activities scheduled for visitors like arts and crafts. This is great entertainment for kids and adults alike.
Sports are paramount to the cultural value of living in New Orleans. If you are a football fan, the Saints NFL franchise has been one of the most successful in the league in the past decade, led by quarterback Drew Brees and head coach Sean Payton. While both are now retired, the fandom for the team lives on.
Con: Education and Job Opportunities
A huge downside to living in Louisiana is that the job market is very harsh. It took the region years to recover from Hurricane Katrina, and the pandemic has done an even bigger number on the job losses in the area. Employment opportunities should rise again though now that the pandemic’s peak seems to have passed.
The funding for education in Louisiana has been lacking for a long time, and in turn, the number of people who get can get a higher education is low. People turn to drugs and alcohol because of mental health and physical health problems due to poor wages.
If you can get into an industry that has been traditionally important to Louisiana, like the oil business, you may have success as an employed person in the area. Make sure you have something lined up before moving to the state.
Pro: Life Insurance Is Very Available
With the large number of unhealthy people in the region, it is important to protect yourself with life insurance. Louisiana has the second most life insurance providers in the southern U.S. This gives you a lot of options to choose from, but the same qualifiers apply anywhere you try to get life insurance.
You need to make sure that you are a non-smoker, a non-drinker, and have a pretty clean health background. Your rates are going to be much higher depending on your age and any preexisting health conditions. Getting life insurance after a heart attack, for instance, can be very difficult.
Try to clean up your lifestyle choices before you apply for life insurance in Louisiana, as the companies there will be on the lookout for red flags. Getting exercise, eating right, and paying attention to your health will help in getting a decent life insurance policy for your family.
Con: Natural Disasters
This has already been talked about a little bit, but it’s unfortunately become one of the main things that come to mind about Louisiana and New Orleans specifically. There is a high risk of natural disaster in the region due to where it is located along the Gulf Coast, with Hurricane Katrina being the most famous storm.
Try to purchase a home on higher ground if you think about moving to Louisiana. This won’t guarantee that you will be safe during a disaster, but it gives you a better chance to survive or evacuate in time. The best Louisiana home insurance coverage should have hurricane and storm riders.
The positive to the natural disasters in the state is that it has made the people who live there strong. The citizens who have endured such heartache and tragedy have also blazed a trail of perseverance for anyone who wants to join them in the future. The area had to be rebuilt after Hurricane Katrina.
Now it has had to recover from an especially bad experience during the pandemic. The effect of COVID-19 has been even worse for the Bayou State due to job loss and poor job recovery. If there’s anything you can count on from these people, though, it’s that they’ll always find a way to see the light in the shroud of darkness.
