The small cities across the United States were recently ranked by WalletHub in its first-ever study of the Best and Worst Small Cities in America. Among them stood a familiar name, ranked sixth overall on a list of more than 1,200: Southlake, Texas. The city ranked high in all categories, making it the only Texas small city to rank in the top 10.
"Southlake did well across the board," said Jill Gonzalez, analyst and spokesperson at WalletHub. "The median household income is the third highest in the country when talking about small cities."
Households in Southlake, on average, are bringing in $173,000 per year, which contributes to the high affordability rating.
"In Texas, that buys you a lot of house," Gonzalez said. "When looking at just median annual household income and comparing it to median house price or rent, Southlake ranks very high."
Southlake ranked 18th in the country amongst small cities in economic health, chiefly because only three percent of residents live below the poverty level.
"We're looking at over 1,200 small cities, so ranking in the top 10 or 20 is a big feat," Gonzalez said. "You're not giving up a lot of living in Southlake."
Per capita, the city has 31 restaurants, 22 bars, 41 coffee shops and 90 fitness facilities, which Gonzalez said are numbers you see in medium-to-large-sized cities.
"Seeing those types of numbers in a smaller city speaks to how much you still have there while paying a lot less for it," she added.
Princeton, N.J. topped the list with a top-ranked economic health rating and seventh-ranked education and health rank. Education rankings, Gonzalez noted, were on a statewide level; with New Jersey ranking third in the nation and Texas at 27th, Southlake's ranking could have been watered down, especially given the recent school rankings: Newsweek Ranks Carroll in Top 150 High Schools in the Nation, 10th in Texas and This Just In: Carroll ISD Ranks No. 1 School District in Texas.
Southlake did top Princeton in the affordability category, comparing third (Southlake) to 1,144th.
The study was compiled over a six-week timeframe, Gonzalez noted. Existing data from the U.S. Census, FBI and U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Areavibes, Yelp and WalletHub Research was used from 2014.
Jill Gonzalez is the spokesperson for WalletHub. Her appearances as a Wallet Guru include Wall Street Journal Live, Newsmax TV and ABC News New York. Previously, she covered sports as a sideline reporter for Verizon FiOS1Sports headquartered in New York City. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Strategic Communications and a minor in broadcasting from The Ohio State University.
To read the full report, click here.