The #1 Smart Place to Live

Okay, I must be a genius, because my hometown of Nashville is featured at the #1 spot in “50 Smart Places to Live” in the June issue of Kiplinger’s Personal Finance. For once, cost of living was a key factor in the choices, so it’s worth mentioning here.

Sometimes people ask how I could have lived in New York City for years, traveled around the globe and lived in Istanbul and Seoul, but settled down in Nashville, Tennessee. It’s simple really: it’s a pleasant place to live, with lots to see and do, and the price is right. My mortgage is less than a grand, for a house with a big yard and a place to park two cars. Try to find a place for that amount in New York City and you’ll be lucky to find a glorified walk-in closet to sublet, right next to a crack house. I walk my daughter to her nice school, I walk to the scrumptious bakery featured in the article, and I don’t gasp for air when my property tax bill comes in. And despite this being in the bible belt, there’s no shortage of bars with good beers on tap.

I have to admit they nailed the city pretty well, citing “a phenomenal entertainment scene that goes far beyond country.” They mention the “more than 180 live-music venues” and talked up some worthy things to check out.

The article is not posted online yet, but here’s the rest of the top-10, all of them boasting a cost of living that is at or below the national average. Don’t forget, if you’re not spending all your money on just living, you can travel more and really live.

2) Minneapolis-St. Paul (but brrrrr!)
3) Albuquerque
4) Atlanta (but oh, that traffic)
5) Austin
6) Kansas City
7) Asheville
8) Ithaca (but brrrrr!)
9) Pittsburg
10) Iowa City

Lexington, KY barely missed it, coming in at #13. Here’s a nice article I did on Lexington that just came out on GoNomad.