By: Mady Dahlstrom, Content Editor for Porch.com
Do you think your city is the best place to own a home? From walkability to economic opportunity, each city across America has pros and cons to living. Porch and Redfin have teamed up to provide local insights for each city's commute time, tax fairness, walkability, health, security and safety, climate, real estate confidence, educational and economic opportunity, and resident satisfaction.
With Seattle ranked #7 in economic opportunity and Denver #1 in healthy living, the survey goes beyond the standard factors to consider when buying a home. Redfin real estate agents weighed in on local knowledge surrounding the cities discussed in the results. "The Porch survey illustrates there is much more to homeowner satisfaction than square footage and the number of bathrooms. Communities that offer benefits like highly ranked schools, low crime rates and short commutes tend to have higher home values than surrounding neighborhoods," said Nela Richardson, Redfin chief economist.
At Porch, we surveyed a sample of over 10,000 homeowners across America regarding the criteria above, and the results are all across the map. From Denver, CO to Orlando, FL, the results reflect the opinions and perceptions of homeowners currently living in their respective cities and communities. "With this survey we wanted to focus on how homeowners perceive their place of residence," said Senior Vice President and Head of Communications, Craig Cincotta of Porch.com. "Our sentiment-based survey is unique, and the insights we have found have provided interesting analysis mirrored alongside external data and current events in each of the 67 metros polled."
Here are the top 10 cities to own a home:
1. Denver, CO
"Denver rated highest in healthy living and lowest in real estate confidence. It was above average in climate, resident satisfaction and commute. Cities with similar rankings included Washington, San Jose and Seattle."
"Grand Rapids rated highest in resident satisfaction and lowest in walkability. It was above average in commute, real estate confidence and educational opportunity. Cities with similar rankings included Rochester, Virginia Beach and Washington."
"Washington rated highest in healthy living and lowest in real estate confidence. It was above average in walkability, educational opportunity and economic opportunity. Cities with similar rankings included San Jose, Denver and Minneapolis."
"Virginia Beach rated highest in walkability and lowest in commute. It was above average in educational opportunity, economic opportunity and real estate confidence. Cities with similar rankings included Orlando, Washington and Detroit."
"Rochester rated highest in commute and lowest in tax fairness. It was above average in educational opportunity, real estate confidence and healthy living, and below average in walkability. Cities with similar rankings included Grand Rapids, Buffalo and Kansas City."
6. Orlando, FL
"Orlando rated highest in tax fairness and lowest in climate. It was above average in economic opportunity, walkability and educational opportunity. Cities with similar rankings included Minneapolis, Washington and Tampa."
7. San Jose, CA
"San Jose rated highest in healthy living and lowest in real estate confidence. It was above average in walkability, climate and educational opportunity. Cities with similar rankings included Washington, Seattle and Denver."
"Colorado Springs rated highest in climate and lowest in commute. It was above average in healthy living, security & safety and real estate confidence, and below average in economic opportunity. Cities with similar rankings included Raleigh, Charlotte and Miami."
"Minneapolis rated highest in healthy living and lowest in tax fairness. It was above average in economic opportunity, walkability and security & safety, and below average in climate. Cities with similar rankings included Washington, Boston and Orlando."
10. Seattle, WA
"Seattle rated highest in economic opportunity and lowest in real estate confidence. It was above average in healthy living, climate and walkability, and below average in security & safety. Cities with similar rankings included San Jose, Miami and Denver."
Did your city make the list? Find out where other U.S. cities ranked overall, here.
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