Michigan
This Michigan city is No. 4 in best places to live in US, according to Fortune
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Ann Arbor, the heart of Washtenaw County and the home of the Wolverine dream team, has a new achievement on the city’s repertoire.
Fortune Well, a subsidiary of Fortune Magazine, ranked Ann Arbor as No. 4 on its third annual list of the 50 Best Places to Live for Families.
In an analysis of over 2,000 cities across the U.S., Fortune Well chose the best city in each state for multiple generations to live happily and healthily, based on data relating to five main categories: general wellness, livability, education, financial health and resources for aging adults.
Here’s why Ann Arbor placed as the No. 4 best city for families to live in the U.S.
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Is it affordable to live in Ann Arbor?
Ann Arbor scored 62 out of 100 on Sharecare’s financial well-being index, which measures stress based on economic life and financial security.
According to Fortune, Ann Arbor households have a median income of $95,884, while single family residences had a median sale point of $485,792 as of 2022. Between the university, the Michigan Medicine system and other career tracks in the tech and auto industries, Ann Arbor is ripe with job opportunities.
How are Ann Arbor schools?
Ann Arbor Public Schools educates more than 17,000 students spread across 21 elementary schools, seven middle schools and six high schools. According to the U.S. News & World Report, 73% of elementary students and 81% of middle school students in the district tested at or above the proficient level for reading, and 66% of elementary students and 67% of middle school students tested at or above the proficient level for math. According to Fortune, the district has a high school graduation rate of 91.54%.
More: University of Michigan ranks among the Top 10 most picturesque colleges in America
Is Ann Arbor good for seniors?
Ann Arbor has 29 above-average nursing homes within 50 miles, per 100,000 households. There are also 11 hospitals within 25 miles of Ann Arbor that are recommended by over 50% of patients.
What is there to do in Ann Arbor?
While the city is more diverse than its neighborhoods, downtown Ann Arbor is a hub of activity for all ages.
The calendar is packed with events, including the Ann Arbor Summer Festival, complete with concerts, film screenings, and a circus, the Ann Arbor Art Fair that amasses 30 blocks of the city and the annual LGBTQ+ Pride weekend. The streets are lined with a diverse array of over 400 restaurants, with plenty of international options as well as a big farm-to-table movement thanks to local farms and farmers markets.
There are 162 parks scattered throughout the city, including the Matthaei Botanical Gardens and Nichols Arboretum, and there’s numerous other opportunities for outdoor recreation, such as canoeing and stand-up paddleboarding on Huron River and mountain-biking in the 20,000-acre Waterloo Recreation Area.
Ann Arbor scored a 73 out of 100 on Sharecare’s community well-being index, which measures the number of people that like where they live and take pride in their community.
Top 10 cities on Fortune Well’s 2024 list:
- Silver Spring, Maryland
- Upper Merion, Pennsylvania
- Chantilly, Virginia
- Ann Arbor, Michigan
- Mason, Ohio
- Franklin, Tennessee
- Lafayette, Colorado
- Overland Park, Kansas
- Morristown, New Jersey
- Portsmouth, New Hampshire