Chattanooga Ranked 8th In America's Best Bang-For-The-Buck Cities

  • Monday, December 7, 2009

Chattanooga ranks eighth in Forbes' America's Best Bang-For-The-Buck Cities.

The article says, "Solid housing markets, relatively stable employment, enviable cost of living and quick commutes make these metros among the country's most affordable to live."

The ranking includes such factors as cost of housing, travel time, property taxes, the job situation, home prices and the foreclosure rate.

Here is the list from Forbes:

Rank Metropolitan Statistical Area Housing Affordablity Rank Travel Time Rank Real Estate Taxes Rank Unemployment Rank Vacancies Rank Job Forecast Rank Home Price Forecast Rank Foreclosures Rank
1 Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA Metro Area 21 37 68 1 16 8 19 3
2 Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR Metro Area 40 27 8 4 17 11 29 42
3 Jackson, MS Metro Area 48 6 4 14 14 72 16 9
4 Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area 31 11 60 6 4 9 57 13
5 Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC Metro Area 24 2 5 56 30 16 42 19
6 Wichita, KS Metro Area 22 7 27 42 7 48 45 6
7 McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX Metro Area 19 5 18 82 43 1 27 25
8 Chattanooga, TN-GA Metro Area 37 9 12 50 19 41 33 26
9 Colorado Springs, CO Metro Area 64 23 11 18 27 14 11 64
10 Ogden-Clearfield, UT Metro Area 30 14 21 8 2 68 64 35
11 Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA Metro Area 26 3 38 46 28 84 23 2
12 Columbia, SC Metro Area 38 34 6 56 39 29 28 24
13 Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA Metro Area 25 13 56 23 5 65 62 7
14 Provo-Orem, UT Metro Area 51 1 20 2 1 30 91 66
15 Syracuse, NY Metro Area 18 21 74 31 23 75 20 1
16 Baton Rouge, LA Metro Area 63 40 1 14 33 42 61 11
17 Buffalo-Niagara Falls, NY Metro Area 9 49 76 38 53 31 32 5
18 Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL Metro Area 7 10 34 78 52 23 15 77
19 Tulsa, OK Metro Area 33 39 14 13 45 80 39 41
20 Greenville-Mauldin-Easley, SC Metro Area 46 20 7 70 35 26 52 57
21 Raleigh-Cary, NC Metro Area 74 55 35 42 42 10 41 22
22 Pittsburgh, PA Metro Area 17 79 54 24 84 44 6 14
22 Knoxville, TN Metro Area 62 25 10 42 21 69 73 20
24 Louisville-Jefferson County, KY-IN Metro Area 35 58 17 66 58 21 35 34
25 Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA Metro Area 3 4 23 89 24 90 55 43
26 Oklahoma City, OK Metro Area 28 53 13 4 61 100 60 18
27 Charleston-North Charleston-Summerville, SC Metro Area 82 30 9 61 50 28 4 74
28 Birmingham-Hoover, AL Metro Area 61 56 3 68 65 7 31 52
29 Rochester, NY Metro Area 10 45 88 30 48 98 13 12
30 Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY Metro Area 45 41 85 18 46 62 44 4
30 Greensboro-High Point, NC Metro Area 43 29 16 78 40 59 34 46
32 Toledo, OH Metro Area 4 15 49 78 41 64 25 71
33 El Paso, TX Metro Area 87 24 53 63 8 6 63 51
34 Albuquerque, NM Metro Area 79 38 22 28 37 3 79 70
35 Memphis, TN-MS-AR Metro Area 27 59 26 64 66 43 5 72
36 Portland-South Portland-Biddeford, ME Metro Area 77 19 71 11 44 91 40 10
37 Akron, OH Metro Area 1 32 57 58 22 83 66 50
38 Springfield, MA Metro Area 56 28 72 60 11 77 21 45
39 San Antonio, TX Metro Area 53 73 61 14 67 2 72 30
40 Indianapolis-Carmel, IN Metro Area 12 67 33 26 70 66 37 62
41 Boise City-Nampa, ID Metro Area 71 12 25 58 6 25 88 90
42 Madison, WI Metro Area 67 22 92 3 10 81 75 29
43 Denver-Aurora, CO Metro Area 78 82 37 14 71 20 17 67
44 St.

Louis, MO-IL Metro Area 16 83 46 64 83 24 48 27
45 Austin-Round Rock, TX Metro Area 54 68 89 18 57 4 74 28
45 Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI Metro Area 36 85 67 21 69 33 26 55
47 New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, LA Metro Area 59 54 2 21 62 85 78 33
48 Modesto, CA Metro Area 8 8 50 98 38 86 8 99
49 Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI Metro Area 2 35 52 87 34 67 46 76
50 Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL Metro Area 32 18 15 92 56 17 89 81
51 Columbus, OH Metro Area 20 66 63 32 73 39 54 54
52 Kansas City, MO-KS Metro Area 23 72 47 49 68 27 59 59
52 Dayton, OH Metro Area 11 36 45 73 47 55 69 68
54 Honolulu, HI Metro Area 100 52 28 10 36 97 68 17
55 Salt Lake City, UT Metro Area 88 51 29 6 32 50 84 69
56 Poughkeepsie-Newburgh-Middletown, NY Metro Area 55 44 98 32 9 79 86 8
56 Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC Metro Area 81 69 32 82 63 18 22 44
58 Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN Metro Area 72 64 19 54 54 40 80 31
59 Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT Metro Area 60 57 95 35 31 96 18 23
59 Stockton, CA Metro Area 58 31 59 99 12 54 7 95
61 Worcester, MA Metro Area 50 46 78 61 15 58 49 61
62 Tucson, AZ Metro Area 80 48 31 38 49 71 87 16
63 Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC Metro Area 85 65 51 12 59 32 90 32
64 Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX Metro Area 34 96 80 35 92 5 53 37
65 Richmond, VA Metro Area 73 60 40 26 55 51 81 48
66 Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ Metro Area 83 47 86 51 13 63 83 15
67 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA Metro Area 93 86 82 51 75 19 2 36
68 Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX Metro Area 44 95 75 40 96 13 43 39
69 Bakersfield, CA Metro Area 66 26 42 93 26 94 10 96
70 Cincinnati-Middletown, OH-KY-IN Metro Area 14 76 44 53 78 76 56 58
71 Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA Metro Area 89 42 83 77 3 52 24 86
72 Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL Metro Area 5 17 58 93 80 15 93 97
73 New Haven-Milford, CT Metro Area 68 43 97 32 18 99 58 53
74 Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, OH Metro Area 6 74 66 35 81 95 47 65
74 Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA Metro Area 92 78 69 75 60 37 9 49
76 Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT Metro Area 94 50 100 29 20 88 50 40
77 Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metro Area 76 97 87 8 88 34 14 73
78 Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD Metro Area 57 94 83 46 89 61 30 38
78 Bradenton-Sarasota-Venice, FL Metro Area 70 16 55 91 76 12 96 82
78 Fresno, CA Metro Area 86 33 36 96 29 56 70 92
81 Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH Metro Area 91 91 91 46 82 57 12 47
82 Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ Metro Area 29 87 24 42 93 73 97 89
83 Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA Metro Area 15 93 39 72 95 92 51 78
84 Jacksonville, FL Metro Area 42 61 30 73 74 87 95 80
85 Baltimore-Towson, MD Metro Area 75 84 64 24 79 74 85 60
86 San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA Metro Area 95 81 77 68 77 60 3 88
87 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL Metro Area 41 80 41 84 90 38 94 83
88 Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI Metro Area 84 62 90 40 51 89 76 63
89 Orlando-Kissimmee, FL Metro Area 52 77 48 81 87 22 100 94
90 San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA Metro Area 99 90 94 70 85 49 1 75
91 Sacramento--Arden-Arcade--Roseville, CA Metro Area 47 75 65 85 72 70 67 93
92 San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA Metro Area 97 70 96 85 25 53 71 79
92 Las Vegas-Paradise, NV Metro Area 39 71 43 93 86 46 98 100
94 Providence-New Bedford-Fall River, RI-MA Metro Area 69 63 81 89 64 82 77 56
95 Detroit-Warren-Livonia, MI Metro Area 13 89 73 100 94 93 36 85
96 Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA Metro Area 49 88 62 97 91 35 65 98
97 Chicago-Naperville-Joliet, IL-IN-WI Metro Area 65 98 93 66 98 47 38 84
98 New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, NY-NJ-PA Metro Area 98 100 99 54 100 78 92 21
99 Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL Metro Area 90 92 70 75 99 36 99 91
100 Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA Metro Area 96 99 79 87 97 45 82 87

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