Safe, prosperous and smart: 20 great American cities to live in
Americans take into account different factors when choosing where to live. For some, the quality of schools is important. For others, the strength of the local economy or personal safety takes priority.
To determine America’s best cities to live in, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed data on the 550 cities with populations of 65,000 or more as measured by the U.S. Census Bureau. Based on variables including crime rates, employment growth, educational attainment and housing affordability, 24/7 Wall St. identified America’s 50 Best Cities to Live. (Visit 247WallSt.com to see our methodology at the end of our full report.)
The labor market was a key measure we used to identify the best cities. In order to be considered, a city needed positive employment growth between 2011 and 2013. Seventy cities did not meet this standard. Cities scored well if employment growth was high. Olathe, Kansas, one of the best cities to live in, received high marks because it had 14.4% employment growth — one of the best during that time.
In the U.S., the national unemployment rate was 7.4% in 2013, high by historical standards. And in many cities it was much worse. Because unemployment is such an important factor, we also eliminated cities from consideration if their unemployment rates were more than 33% above the 2013 national rate — our cutoff rate was 9.8%. This alone excluded more than 100 cities from consideration.
Of course, the availability of jobs is not enough to make a city worth moving to. Safety is also important. According to Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) data, violent crime rates were far higher in metropolitan areas — where the vast majority of Americans live — than in smaller cities and other parts of the country. Roughly half of all cities were excluded because they reported property or violent crime rates that were at least 25% higher than the 2012 national rates.
The vast majority of the nation’s best cities to live in had especially low violent crime rates. In fact, the violent crime rate in 35 of the 50 cities was less than half the national rate of 387 incidents per 100,000 residents in 2012.
For parents, a strong school system also influences where to live. According to Daren Blomquist, vice president of RealtyTrac, a housing market data site, “quality of education is the No. 1 issue home buyers ask about most.”
We ranked math, language arts and science scores tabulated by Homefacts, a RealtyTrac subsidiary. Seven of the top 10 cities on our list were among the top 10% of large cities nationwide for math achievement, and eight were among the top 10% for language arts.
Lesser factors included the availability of restaurants, theaters, fitness clubs and other amenities. While such factors might seem like an afterthought, Americans spend more than five hours a day on leisure activities, according to the Census Bureau.
Some cities score well because of the number of dining options, as is the case with Evanston, Illinois. The city is part of Cook County, which also includes Chicago. This provides Evanston residents with easy access to nearly 9,000 restaurants and more than 900 bars.
Sports teams can also be a big draw. Bellevue, Washington, which ranked as the second best city to live in, is near Seattle — home to Major League Baseball’s Seattle Mariners, Major League Soccer’s Seattle Sounders, and the Super Bowl Champion Seattle Seahawks.
Commuting times can also influence where people live. Proximity to larger metro areas makes getting to work faster. In 34 of the best cities, the average commute time was below the national average of 26 minutes. Additionally, in 10 of these cities, residents both walk and take public transportation in greater proportions than the national average rates, both of which reduce traffic and have the potential to make commuting more pleasant.
Most Americans have to make tradeoffs when choosing where they live. Many of the best cities are expensive when judged by the national cost of living, an index that compares the cost of a basket of consumer goods in cities across the U.S. However, cost of living varies widely by region. When the best cities are compared to their state, a majority are no more than 20% more expensive than the state’s average cost of living.
Many of the best cities are located near major cities, as this proximity provides residents with access to good schools while living in safe neighborhoods. It also allows them to enjoy the amenities available in the nearby larger cities.
Perhaps surprisingly, none of America’s largest cities are on this list. There is no New York, Los Angeles, or Houston among the best places to live. Nearly all of the biggest cities in the country by population had crime rates that automatically excluded them from consideration. Additionally, more than half of these cities had poverty rates above 21.1%, or 33% above the national rate, making them ineligible.
Yahoo Homes is publishing the top 20 cities here. Click here or on the image above to see them.
And to see the full report with all 50 cities, visit 247WallSt.com:
