Manhattan Beach was ranked as the nation’s “best city to live” with Newport Beach No. 8, says one “livability” scorecard.
24/7 Wall St. compiled economic, demographic, health and safety stats to rank U.S. cities by affordability, economy, quality of life, and community.
“It is important to note that there is no such thing as a perfect city or town, and that many of the attributes one may look for in a community are subjective and not quantifiable,” 24/7 Wall St. wrote. “This list favors areas with conditions that have almost universal appeal, however.”
These rankings are one more palatable way to digest economic and demographic trends than serious business research. And this grading tended to favor smaller, wealthier towns. That’s not for everybody, whether that’s the size of one’s checkbook or personal preference.
Still, let’s note that Manhattan Beach and Newport Beach were two of nine California communities to make the 50-city “best” list: Piedmont (5th); Burlingame (11th); Santa Barbara (17th); Monterey (18th ); Palo Alto (21nd ); Orinda (28th ); and one big city, San Francisco (45th).
Of Manhattan Beach, 24/7 wrote, “Residents have access to a major urban area and miles of ocean coast. Due in part to its high desirability as a place to live, real estate in Manhattan Beach is expensive, as is the overall cost of living. People living there tend to be relatively affluent, with over half of all area households reporting incomes over $150,000 a year. As is often the case in wealthy areas, serious crimes are relatively uncommon in Manhattan Beach. The city’s violent crime rate of 158.2 incidents per 100,000 people is less than half the national rate of 380.6 per 100,000.”
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Of Newport Beach, 24/7 wrote, “The typical household in the city earns $122,709 a year, more than double the national median of $60,293. Newport Beach residents are also relatively healthy in that they are far more likely to exercise regularly and less likely to be obese than the typical American. This is likely due in part to residents’ access to exercise opportunities, as 99.1% of residents across Orange County — where Newport Beach is located — have easy access to places for physical activity, like parks, recreation centers, and gyms.”
24/7’s list of the 50 “worst cities to live in” had four from California on it: No. 22 Phelan; No. 23 Winton; No. 31. Earlimart; and No. 37 Lakeland Village.
