Small cities are the guts and soul of our nation — and because the price of residing continues to skyrocket in giant city areas, extra persons are transferring to less-populated communities. And whereas there are literally thousands of small cities to think about, in the case of a high quality public schooling system and a wholesome way of life, Lexington, Massachusetts, leads the way in which.
This charming suburb, positioned about 13 miles northwest of Boston, will not be solely one of many best locations to dwell within the Bay State, but it surely’s one of many nicest within the U.S. In accordance with WalletHub’s annual rankings of the most effective small cities (which concerned evaluating 1,300 locations for affordability, financial well being, high quality of life, security, in addition to schooling and well being), Lexington is the third finest small city in America, simply after Brookfield, Wisconsin, and Carmel, Indiana.
However in the case of schooling particularly, the web site ranked Lexington as the primary within the nation. “Lexington advantages from being in Massachusetts, the state with the most effective faculty programs within the nation,” WalletHub reported. In accordance with Area of interest, a evaluate website for faculties, Lexington has the fourth-best faculty district within the state — a mean of 97 % of scholars graduate.
The city additionally ranked first in well being. It has the second-highest share of individuals with medical insurance within the nation and in addition has the Twenty second-most health facilities per capita.
Moreover, WalletHub’s report highlighted how secure Lexington is. It has the fourth-lowest property crime charge and Thirty seventh-lowest violent crime charge amongst small cities. Automobile crash deaths and drunk driving fatalities are additionally across the lowest within the nation.
In accordance with information from america Census Bureau, the city is dwelling to slightly below 35,000 folks, has a median age of 47, and has one of many highest median annual family incomes (clocking in at $206,323) in not solely the state however the nation. Simply 4.2 % of Lexington residents are experiencing poverty.
“Residents even have the Tenth-highest median credit score rating, at 783, exhibiting that folks within the metropolis are doing very nicely financially,” WalletHub reported.
Nevertheless, the mix of low crime charges, wonderful public faculties, and proximity to Boston has resulted in Lexington changing into certainly one of Massachusetts’s most costly ZIP codes. In accordance with a latest evaluation by the Boston Enterprise Journal, Lexington is the 18th wealthiest ZIP code within the state, and Zillow reviews the median dwelling worth as slightly over $1.5 million. Consequently, WalletHub ranked it at 518th for affordability.
However, if Lexington is not fairly what you are in search of, and you are still hoping to settle someplace in Massachusetts — WalletHub ranks it the most effective state to dwell in because of its extremely regarded schooling system and well being care infrastructure — take into account different Bay State small cities on the record together with Milton, Arlington, and Newton.