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America's Best Place to Live: Residents of Huntsville Alabama in SHOCK after dethroning this city

Huntsville's high quality of life, affordability, and low property prices propelled the city to first place

In what is good news for residents of Huntsville, the city in Alabama has been declared the best place to live in the United States. According to the U.S News & World Report released on Monday, May 16, 2022, Huntsville ranked first in the 2022-2023 Best Places to Live list. The 'Rocket City' jumped from third place last year to first place this year, dethroning Boulder, Colorado. Meanwhile, Boulder, which consecutively topped the list in 2020 and 2021, was relegated to fourth place, with San Jose, California, coming in fifth. 

Every year, U.S. News ranks 150 of the country's metro areas based on five indices: job market, housing affordability, quality of life, desirability, and net migration, which measures the trend of people moving into or out of the area. Huntsville's high quality of life, affordability, and low property prices propelled the city to first place in 2022, especially given the national housing crisis, which has pushed many previously affordable areas out of reach of average Americans.

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Huntsville was once a sleepy agricultural town that exploded in the 1960s when NASA opened its Marshall Space Flight Center, which developed the Saturn V rocket that took the Apollo astronauts to the moon. The Army also opened the Redstone Arsenal chemical weapons plant, as well as the Aviation and Missile Command. The FBI's operational support headquarters are also in town, providing a stable economic foundation for the community.

Huntsville has a burgeoning biotech industry, which pays well above average. The city scored well in housing and the job market, which is understandable given its stable government jobs, but it fell short in desirability. Huntsville's average house price is $192,667, compared to the national average of $365,646. In comparison, in Colorado Springs, the second-best city, a house can cost as much as $555,072.

The news of Huntsville topping the list was received with equal measures of joy and disbelief on Twitter. One user wrote, “As difficult as this may be for some to believe, Huntsville Alabama is the highest IQ place in the US and perhaps the entire world!  All of the genius rocket scientists and brilliant engineers such as my wonderful father who had a PE in Mechanical and Aviation engineering,” while another argued, “Colorado Springs is way better.”

Another user wrote, “Folks I was born and raised in Huntsville, Alabama and there is absolutely no shot that it’s the #1 place to live the U.S.”  U.S. Senator Richard Shelby wrote, “Very proud to see #Huntsville, Alabama, has been rated the nation's best place to live by @USNews. The #RocketCity boasts a strong job market coupled with competitive salaries, affordable housing, excellent schools, and major opportunities for success. Living there can't be beat.”