- The Top 10 Cities for Working Parents
Being a parent is a full time job. Nonetheless, on top of the substantial energy required to raise a child, most parents in the United States are also employed. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, among U.S. families that have children, 88.7% have at least one working parent. In 60.2% of those families both… read more…
- America’s Sister Cities
It’s a common practice for U.S. cities to have sister cities in foreign countries. New York City’s official sister cities include Beijing, Cairo and Budapest. But there are sister cities within the U.S., too. SmartAsset took a look at Census Bureau… read more…
- Where Are Millennials Buying Homes? – 2016 Edition
The homeownership rate among young people has been declining steadily in recent years. In 2005, 43% of adults under the age of 35 owned a home. Today that rate is just 35%. There are a number of possible reasons for this shift, including the rising cost of housing in many cities. Yet, just as housing… read more…
- The Best Cities for Public Transportation in 2016
According to the Texas A&M Transportation Institute, the average auto commuter in the United States spends 42 hours per year in traffic. That same study puts the price tag of those delays at $960 per driver. In big cities, the numbers are even uglier. Drivers in the 15 largest U.S. metro areas spend an average… read more…
- The Most Affordable Beach Towns in 2016
Fact: Americans love beaches. From Miami Beach to Venice Beach to Coney Island, we love to sit in the sand next to the sea and soak up the sun. We love listening to the waves roll in and we love to watch the sun rise (or set) over the ocean. We have songs about the… read more…
- The Best Cities for Beer Drinkers – 2015 Edition
We may be living in the golden age of good beer. According to the Brewers Association, there are more breweries and brewpubs in the United States today than at any point in the past century. And the number is only increasing. In 2014 alone, 456 new microbreweries opened for business in the U.S. That’s more… read more…
- The Top 10 Boomtowns of 2015
In the story of the great recession and the ensuing recovery, 2015 may be remembered as the year the economy finally returned to full strength. Unemployment is at its lowest rate in a decade. Housing prices are climbing steadily upwards. GDP growth is consistent if not robust. In some cities, however, the story of the… read more…
- How Much House Can Millennials Afford?
According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, millennials (born between 1980 and 2000) are buying homes at a far lower rate than previous generations. The 2015 Q3 homeownership rate for adults under the age of 35 was 35.8%. In 1995 it was 39.1%. In 2005 it was even higher at 43%. While no one… read more…
- The Best Ski Towns in America – 2015 Edition
Shorter days, cold weather, lousy produce: there’s much to dislike about winter. Indeed, surveys of public opinion routinely find that winter is America’s least favorite season. (Spring and fall trade places as the favorites.) There’s even a medical term for winter-induced melancholy: seasonal affective disorder. In America’s ski towns, however, this attitude is flipped on its… read more…
- The Most Fitness-Friendly Cities for 2016
According to a survey by Nielson, the top two New Year’s resolutions in 2015 were both fitness-related. The number one resolution, claimed by 37% of survey respondents, was “stay fit and healthy,” followed by “lose weight” with 32%. This is SmartAsset’s second annual study of the Most Fitness-Friendly Cities in America. Read the 2017 version here.… read more…
- The Best Cities for Outdoor Enthusiasts in 2015
Research has found that city-dwellers can benefit mentally and physically from as few as five minutes in a forest or a green space. Yet, in many urban parts of the United States, access to such areas is limited. Residents who want to escape the roar of traffic and the oppressive gray of concrete high-rises do… read more…
- The Safest Cities in America in 2015
Safety first, right? Whether you’re thinking about relocating for your career, looking for a good neighborhood in which to buy a home or trying to decide where you want to attend college, safety is always a top consideration. It’s pretty safe to say that no one wants to live in a place where they feel… read more…
- The Best Places to Be a Nurse in 2015
Since 2009, the number of nurses in the United States has grown by almost 7%. Thanks to an aging population, the job growth for nurses is expected to continue apace in the near future. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projected total job growth for registered nurses would be 19.4% between 2012 and 2022. That places… read more…
- The Best College Towns to Live In – 2015 Edition
There’s something magical about a college town. From the leafy green spaces of campus to the nearby strip of cafes, bookstores and bars, college towns at their best are charming yet vibrant places to live. They attract artists and philosophers, spurring creativity on and off campus. This is SmartAsset’s second annual study of the best college… read more…
- The Cities with the Lowest Startup Costs – 2015 Edition
Starting a business isn’t cheap. One of the biggest challenges for most entrepreneurs is raising capital to fund the early stages of their company, before it has the customers and revenue to support itself. For this reason, founders often take out a small business loan or seek seed investments from angel investors to get things under way.… read more…
- The Best Cities for Children in 2015
Families move for a wide variety of reasons. In one U.S. Census Bureau survey of Americans who had recently relocated, roughly half of all respondents cited housing as the primary reason for their move, while 30% said they moved for family reasons and 20% moved for work-related reasons. This is the 2015 version of SmartAsset’s… read more…
- The Best States for Homeowners in 2015
Housing policies at the state level can have a significant impact on homeowners. State regulations regarding taxes, insurance and mortgage lending affect home prices and the costs of ownership. Likewise, the economic conditions in a given state can have a profound impact on local housing markets. This is the 2015 version of SmartAsset’s study. Read… read more…
- The Top 10 Best Cities to be a Real Estate Agent in 2015
Although we are now several years beyond the housing crisis, the recovery in U.S. cities has been uneven. Low mortgage rates and strong economic fundamentals have spurred explosive growth in sales and construction in cities like Denver and Seattle. In other areas, however, the market is tepid and prices remain well below the highs they… read more…
- The Least-Stressed Cities in America in 2015
Feeling stressed out? You’re not the only one. A 2014 study by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Harvard School of Public Health found that half of all American adults dealt with a major stressful event over the prior year. And that doesn’t even consider the cumulative effect of the smaller daily stresses of… read more…
- The Cities with the Highest (and Lowest) Real Minimum Wage – 2015 Edition
Over the past several years cities such as Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles have opted to enact their own minimum wage laws in lieu of increases at the state or federal level. Part of the logic behind these increases is that living costs in cities are higher, making it harder to survive on a… read more…
- The Top 10 Cities for Healthcare Access and Home Affordability in 2015
Most people, when buying a home, will look not just at the house itself but at the block, the street, the neighborhood and the city. Are there parks nearby? How safe is the neighborhood? What is the commute like? Is there access to public transportation? And what about the schools? These are typical questions to… read more…
- The Cities with Too Many (or Too Few) Sports Teams
What if the Denver Broncos became the Bridgeport Broncos? Or LeBron’s Cavaliers played their home games in Riverside, California? Denver and Cleveland fans: calm down – this isn’t going to happen. But, from at least one perspective, it wouldn’t be totally crazy if it did. Find out now: Is it better to rent or buy?… read more…
- The Top Ten Cities for Creatives
A thriving creative class is a key feature of nearly every successful modern city. A vibrant culture is not only valuable in its own right, it also often serves to attract and inspire talented workers in non-creative fields, creating a rising tide that benefits the entire city. However, that very same rising tide often lifts housing… read more…
- The Happiest Places in America in 2015
Residents of the United States enjoy a quality of life that is among the highest in the world. The U.S. consistently ranks in the top 10 of the OECD’s “Better Life Index,” which compares countries based on a wide variety of factors. In 2015 the red, white and blue ranked 6th overall – just behind… read more…
- How Much You Need to Make to Pay Rent in 2015
According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), a household that spends over 30% of its income on housing is considered “cost-burdened” and could find themselves under financial stress, unable to purchase basics like clothing, medical care and even food. Yet, for too many families, that 30% — which includes rent (or… read more…