The Best Place to Live in North Carolina is Cary…of course!

The Town of Cary was named last year by the “Money” section of Time Magazine as one of the Top 10 Best Places to Live across the entire United States. In accordance with those lofty accolades, Time also has more recently honored one municipality in each of the 50 states individually for the year ending 2018. In this prestigious annual polling, it was the Town of Cary being recognized as the Best Place to Live in North Carolina.

A Quiet, Suburban Lifestyle Awaits in Cary

Again, detailing the reasoning behind Cary being their selection as the Best Place to Live in North Carolina, Time columnist Shaina Mishkin noted that “Cary offers a quieter, suburban lifestyle with a significantly lower population than nearby Raleigh.” She added, “MONEY not only named Cary the best place to

live in North Carolina, but the city also made it into the top 10 of the Best Places to Live in the entire country.”

The blog post detailing Cary being chosen as the Best Place to Live in North Carolina also went in depth in its explanation of the decision-making process and how they arrived at one top city or town in each of the 50 states. “We looked only at places with populations of 50,000 or greater,” the blog post explains. “We eliminated any place that had more than double the national crime risk, less than 85% of its state’s median household income, or a lack of ethnic diversity.”

Plentiful Jobs and Affordable Housing Make a Great Place to Live

Most noteworthy it may seem in the writings of Mishkin was her discussing of the employment and housing situation in Cary. “You likely won’t have trouble finding a job once you get there,” she foretells, “as Moody’s Analytics predicts the area will see a 9.6% increase in jobs by the year 2022.” Mishkin further explained, “…this is fueled in part by the recent spike in tech sector career opportunities in nearby Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill (referred to as the Triangle).”

She concluded her piece on the town of Cary is the Best Place to Live in North Carolina, saying, “Within Cary itself, the median home listing is $442,370 with an average of $3,304 in property taxes…And safety counts: The crime rate is lower than in the state’s cities, and also lower than the national average.”

Specific Categories Analyzed for Best Places to Live in North Carolina

Economy— based on the local unemployment rate, historical job growth, projected job growth and the level of employment opportunities available, among other factors.

Cost of living — based on tax burden, insurance costs, commuting costs, medical spending, utility, and home expenses.

Diversity — based on racial makeup, racial integration, and economic diversity within a place’s population.

Education — based on math and reading test scores and local and county level high school graduation rates.

Income — based on historical median household income, projected household income, a comparison between local and state median household income and change between current and historical household income.

Housing — based on com Housing Affordability Index and Housing Growth Index at the city level, plus other realtor.com housing statistics available at realtor.com/research

Crime — based on property and violent crime risk as well as homicide and drug overdose rates.

Amenities — based on the number of doctors and hospitals in the area as well as a number of leisure activities in the town and surrounding area, including bars, restaurants, museums, sports complexes, and green spaces.

Ease of living — based on commute times, weather, and other factors.

For further details on Cary being named the Best Place to Live in North Carolina, including all the other states selections’ and more, visit time.com.