It's another good day to live in Austin, Texas.
Last year, Austin knocked Denver from the No. 1 spot on U.S. News and World Report's "Best Places to Live in the U.S." And this year, it didn't budge.
Here's why @VisitAustinTX is the Best Place to Live in 2018. #BestPlaces2018 https://t.co/1mXCZ1a79X pic.twitter.com/vIyEgVxGiK
— U.S. News (@usnews) April 10, 2018
As in years past, the publication ranked the 125 largest cities in the country based on a variety of factors and data. Five indexes were used to compile the list: job market, value, quality of life, desirability and net migration. Cities were graded on each of these indexes on a 10-point scale, which were then averaged for an overall score.
Overall, Austin earned a 7.7 out of 10. Of the measurements, Austin scored highest in the net migration category with 9.4. Austin also scored high in the desirability index with an 8.9.
The top 10 cities are:
1. Austin
2. Colorado Springs, Colorado
3. Denver
4. Des Moines, Iowa
5. Fayetteville, Arkansas
6. Portland, Oregon
7. Huntsville, Alabama
8. Washington, D.C.
9. Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota
10. Seattle
Austin Mayor Steve Adler took to Twitter to share the good news:
We've known Austin to be the best place to live in America long before we started getting on any of these lists. We’re a great city today because we maintain what’s special about Austin even as we grow and change. 1/2 https://t.co/OG21PSyPSi
— Mayor Adler (@MayorAdler) April 10, 2018
If we’re going to keep this up we have to find innovative ways to address mobility & affordability challenges. We’ll be a truly special place when we become the first boomtown to crack the code on managing rapid growth to preserve what made the city special to begin with. 2/2
— Mayor Adler (@MayorAdler) April 10, 2018
It's not all sunshine in the greatest place to live in the U.S., however. Or maybe it's too much sunshine, in at least one category. U.S. News and World Report noted Austin's higher-than-average housing costs, its notoriously bad traffic, issues with segregation and those hot, hot summers as negative factors.
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