Bend is the best city in the state based on the following desirable factors: amenities, cost of living, crime rate, education, employment and distance to hiking and skiing.
Oregon is easily one of the most naturally beautiful, unique, diverse, and livable states in our country. It spurred the show Portlandia, it is the namesake of the best computer game ever, Oregon Trail and the state motto is even beautiful: Alis volat propriis (she flies with her own wings).
So as a part of Movoto Real Estate’s ongoing series exploring some of the best places to live in America, state by state, they turned an analytical eyes toward Oregon. Here isthe list of the 10 best cities in Oregon, ordered from amazing to simply excellent.
1. Bend
2. Sherwood
3. Beaverton
4. Milwaukie
5. Oregon City
6. Tigard
7. Portland
8. West Linn
9. Lake Oswego
10. Happy Valley
What Makes an Awesome City?
A lot of things make a city awesome, but in order to find these best cities in Oregon, Movoto Real Estate needed a list of measurable criteria across the board.
So they came up with these eight:
• Amenities
• Cost of living (percent above or below state’s average)
• Crime rate
• Education
• Median household income
• Home value
• Distance to closest 5-star rated hiking
• Distance to closest ski resort
Movoto Real Estate started with a list of the 50 most populous cities in Oregon and ranked them from one to 50 in each of the criteria above, with one being the best. Then, we averaged the numbers for each city, gave them an overall Big Deal Score—the lower the number, the higher the city ranked.
Now that you know how they did it read on to find out just why Bend is so special and where it excelled.
“This city certainly didn’t have to bend over backward to make it to the top of our list—it won outright. Bend is not only just a few miles away from some of the best hiking trails and ski resorts in Oregon, but it also has a stellar education system, with a high school graduation rate 10 percent higher than the state average and some of the highest home values in the state as well.
Over the past five years, Bend’s population has been booming. Outdoor enthusiasts flock from far and wide for parks like Pilot Butte State Scenic Viewpoint, skiers to Mount Bachelor, and runners to the Haulin’ Aspen Trail Marathon. It truly is a wonderful place to raise a family—or at least, raise your heart rate.”
For a complete list:
www.movoto.com/blog/top-ten/the-10-best-cities-in-oregon
