A new ranking looks at the neighborhood qualities Americans value most, and several smaller metros beat out bigger names.
A beautiful house loses some of its appeal if you dread coming home to the neighborhood. But figuring out what a place is actually like to live in takes more than scrolling through listing photos. Those generally don’t tell you much about life beyond the property line.
A Neighbors Bank study surveyed more than 1,000 U.S. adults, then ranked the 100 largest metros using neighborhood qualities people valued. Safety carried the most weight. Other factors included upkeep, affordability, walkability, and access to stores and healthcare.
These are metro areas, rather than individual neighborhoods, and the ranking measures local conditions rather than residents’ friendliness. Still, as a Wisconsinite, I was happy to see which place finished first.
The 10 best U.S. metros for good neighbors, ranked
The rankings and home values below come from the study’s Good Neighbor Metros chart. Its typical home values provide context; they aren’t a promise of what you’ll pay for a particular house.
10. Provo, Utah
Provo’s strongest category was safety. The study lists a typical home value of $547,000…