Choosing a city to live in is a personal decision, but in an increasingly expensive housing market, affordability is more important than ever.
"Every year we ask consumers what they're looking for in a place to live, and this year consumers overwhelmingly cited that they were looking for value and affordability," US News & World Report consumer lending analyst Erika Giovanetti told Business Insider. "They even said that they're looking for affordability over quality of life and desirability."
US News & World Report analyzed more than 850 US cities and ranked them based on four key indexes: value, quality of life, desirability, and job market. This year's rankings differ from previous years by weighting value higher than the other categories.
"Education, college readiness, access to healthcare — all of these things fall under quality of life, but consumers this year are really feeling it in their wallets, and they are willing to make sacrifices if it's about finding a more affordable place to live," Giovanetti said of the rationale.
While the Midwest has become the most affordable region of the country, a majority of the entries on US News' best cities to live in list are in Southern states.
Giovanetti noted that while affordability is an important factor this year, cities toward the top of the list are ones that demonstrate balance across all key categories. Johns Creek, Georgia, for example, finished first in last year's rankings, but dropped to fifth this year, mainly because it's pricier than other cities.
"Johns Creek ranks 232 for value, which is not so bad in the grand scheme of things, but it is one of the more higher priced cities that made the top of our list," she said.
Below, the best places to live in the US, according to US News & World Report.
15. Buffalo Grove, IL
Population: 41,765
Median home value: $380,110
Median household income: $135,543
14. Parkland, FL
Population: 36,938
Median home value: $896,250
Median household income: $223,200
13. League City, TX
Population: 109,083
Median home value: $344,265
Median household income: $123,032
12. Troy, MI
Population: 90,584
Median home value: $396,774
Median household income: $120,757
11. Cary, NC
Population: 182,416
Median home value: $570,890
Median household income: $136,700
10. Sugar Land, TX
Population: 114,818
Median home value: $431,815
Median household income: $140,511
9. Frisco, TX
Population: 229,028
Median home value: $627,426
Median household income: $152,749
8. Leander, TX
Population: 81,757
Median home value: $495,712
Median household income: $143,568
7. Rochester Hills, MI
Population: 77,520
Median home value: $388,231
Median household income: $119,938
6. Hoover, AL
Population: 91,649
Median home value: $382,915
Median household income: $104,005
5. Johns Creek, GA
Population: 78,408
Median home value: $588,835
Median household income: $167,051
4. Ankeny, IA
Population: 78,414
Median home value: $331,417
Median household income: $107,871
3. Flower Mound, TX
Population: 77,576
Median home value: $553,334
Median household income: $167,151
2. Fishers, IN
Population: 102,895
Median home value: $405,882
Median household income: $136,502
1. Carmel, IN
Population: 103,768
Median home value: $477,625
Median household income: $144,615
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Jordan reports on moving trends — from remote work to house hacking. He also writes about movers struggling with issues around relocating like buyer's remorse and the many intricacies of moving to an unfamiliar state. He also has stories focusing on property technology and in 2022, moderated a panel on fractional investing at real estate technology conference Blueprint. Before Insider, he covered luxury real estate in South Florida for The Real Deal. He holds a Master's degree in Magazine Writing from New York University and a Bachelor's degree in English from Florida State University.
