Top Ten List of States to Live?

[hoks2415]

For this exercise, let's take out factors like politics, economics/cost of living, career and proximity to family. Assume you are apolitical, can afford to live anywhere, and you can take any family members/friends with you.

Factors to consider are geography, climate, food, recreation, entertainment and proximity to other states/places. Also assume you can live anywhere within the states you choose.

What's your top ten list?

I'll go with:

1) California
2) Florida
3) Texas
4) South Carolina
5) North Carolina
6) Arizona
7) Hawaii
8) Wisconsin
9) Colorado
10) Tennessee

Was hard to keep Oregon and Washington off the list, but sunshine was a big factor.

Had to put Wisconsin in there because going to a supper club and enjoying a relish trey, cheese curds, and a bacon wrapped filet washed down with an old fashioned is truly one of the great American experiences. The townie bars, drinking culture, bloody mary's, and fish fry's are all top notch as well. Any man who wouldn't enjoy Wisconsin culture isn't really a man in my book and may very well be a communist.

 

[NDallasRuss]

I've got to say, even though it's expensive here, Northern Virginia is a terrific place to live because of the proximity to so many things to do within ~3 hours. You've got all the pro sports leagues, access to major college sports, beaches, mountains, wineries/breweries/distilleries, museums (most of which are free), so much history - civil war, revolutionary war, and earlier settlements. I'd put it in my top 5 - but only the Northern half, not Southern VA.

 

[EasyHawk]

Is this heaven? No, it's Iowa. You folks ever heard of the Quad Cities pizza? We have Raising Cane's now too.

 

[Finance85]

Hawaii
LoCal/SoCal
Texas
Florida
Colorado
Wyoming
Montana
South Carolina
Georgia
Idaho

 

[Hoosierhawkeye]

So basically it's about climate and access to entertainment?

This is hard because I havn't been to that many places in my memory.

1. Cali
2. Florida
3. Tennessee
4. South Carolina
5. Wisconsin
6. Michigan
7. Ohio
8. Indiana
9. Oklahoma
10. Maryland

Places that I might consider if I actually had been there or remember being there.

Colorado - Never been
Texas - Was there only as an infant, no memory of the state
North Carolina - Only been in the airport on a connecting flight
Alaska - Never been

 

[notlongago]

Take out all the factors that matter...? Whats the point of this list building then?

 

[FAUlty Gator]

Mississippi
Alabama
Nebraska
West Virginia
Arkansas
Oklahoma
North Dakota
Hawaii
Rhode Island
Indiana

Yup. You guessed it. I love meth.

 

[QChawks]

 

[Hoosierhawkeye]

Take out all the factors that matter...? Whats the point of this list building then?

I think it's mostly if you were to consider what you like in terms of weather, geography and access to entertainment.

 

[millah_22]

Iowa
Nebraska
Kansas
Arkansas
Missouri
Alabama
Mississippi
North Dakota
South Dakota
Oklahoma

 

[Hoosierhawkeye]

Hold on. . . I've never been to New Jersey but I've not heard great things about it so I have a hard time buying that it's considered the most attractive state in the union.

 

[anon_b29nm7v7dwp6r]

Colorado
California
Oregon
Washington
Tennessee
Arizona
Idaho
Carolinas
Virginia

Others in New England could make the list but never been up there. Florida would be for climate….but it’s Florida….Hawaii if I have ever been there.

My top four I would pack up and move tomorrow if the opportunity presented itself.

 

[BelemNole]

Assuming I can afford the lifestyle I want?

1. Montana
2. Colorado
3. Washington
4. NorCal
5. Utah (Park City Area)
6. Oregon
7. Maine
8. Florida (on the water)
9. Arizona (Flagstaff Area)
10. Hawaii

 

[biggreydogs]

Source?

 

[seminole97]

That just begs the question of which states are the most attractive. Well, we’ve got the answer. We found the states where people are the least obese, have high activity levels and don’t have STDs.

At least Iowa can always look down on Missouri.

 

[BelemNole]

Iowa
Nebraska
Kansas
Arkansas
Missouri
Alabama
Mississippi
North Dakota
South Dakota
Oklahoma

The question wasn't "which states have zero intrinsic value."

 

[QChawks]

Source?

Link

The majority of the population in the U.S. is concerned about looks.
At least for 64%, the first thing they notice about someone is how attractive they are.
That just begs the question of which states are the most attractive. Well, we’ve got the answer. We found the states where people are the least obese, have high activity levels and don’t have STDs.
The Most Attractive States

1. New Jersey
2. Hawaii
3. California
4. Massachusetts
5. New York
6. Colorado
7. Connecticut
8. Rhode Island
9. Alaska
10. Arizona

HOW WE DETERMINED THE MOST ATTRACTIVE STATES​

We ranked each state in 5 categories:

• Interest in hair, clothes, and other grooming
• Obesity rates
• Percent of residents who are physically active
• Average Income
• STD rates

While physical appearance is subjective (luckily, meaning someone, somewhere, finds you attractive no matter who you are), we nailed down some common traits people find appealing in a mate.
The first factor is the amount of time and interest people spend trying to look appealing. Using data from YesStyle, we found the states have the most clothes store and hair parlors per person and the interest people have in grooming and self-care.
We then examined obesity rates in each state from the CDC. To follow that up, we looked at the CDC’s information on the percent of residents in each state who meet the recommended daily fitness levels.
However, attraction isn’t just surface level. People are attracted to partners who are successful and well-educated. After all, what’s more beautiful than a nice mind? To measure these, we looked at income levels from the Census’ ACS. Income is correlated with education and while money isn’t the only measure of success, it’s not a bad place to start.
Finally, we looked at STD rates per 100,000 for new cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, and HIV. The more STDs running around, the less attractive the state.

 

[SoonerBeAHawk]

Is this heaven? No, it's Iowa. You folks ever heard of the Quad Cities pizza? We have Raising Cane's now too.

Don't forget ... Iowa is a state of minds, too!

Okay, maybe (probably) before your time but the governor sure liked it.

 

[BelemNole]

 

[SSG T]

Not sure there's 10 I'd pick.

In order

California
Oregon
Washington
Colorado
Hawai'i
New Mexico
Alaska (big maybe)


That's about it

 

[anon_b29nm7v7dwp6r]

That actually nails it pretty well actually.

 

[Hondo_11]

For this exercise, let's take out factors like politics, economics/cost of living, career and proximity to family. Assume you are apolitical, can afford to live anywhere, and you can take any family members/friends with you.

Factors to consider are geography, climate, food, recreation, entertainment and proximity to other states/places. Also assume you can live anywhere within the states you choose.

What's your top ten list?

I'll go with:

1) California
2) Florida
3) Texas
4) South Carolina
5) North Carolina
6) Arizona
7) Hawaii
8) Wisconsin
9) Colorado
10) Tennessee

Was hard to keep Oregon and Washington off the list, but sunshine was a big factor.

Had to put Wisconsin in there because going to a supper club and enjoying a relish trey, cheese curds, and a bacon wrapped filet washed down with an old fashioned is truly one of the great American experiences. The townie bars, drinking culture, bloody mary's, and fish fry's are all top notch as well. Any man who wouldn't enjoy Wisconsin culture isn't really a man in my book and may very well be a communist.

Portugal......

 

[Nole Lou]

For this exercise, let's take out factors like politics, economics/cost of living, career and proximity to family. Assume you are apolitical, can afford to live anywhere, and you can take any family members/friends with you.

Factors to consider are geography, climate, food, recreation, entertainment and proximity to other states/places. Also assume you can live anywhere within the states you choose.

What's your top ten list?

I'll go with:

1) California
2) Florida
3) Texas
4) South Carolina
5) North Carolina
6) Arizona
7) Hawaii
8) Wisconsin
9) Colorado
10) Tennessee

Was hard to keep Oregon and Washington off the list, but sunshine was a big factor.

Had to put Wisconsin in there because going to a supper club and enjoying a relish trey, cheese curds, and a bacon wrapped filet washed down with an old fashioned is truly one of the great American experiences. The townie bars, drinking culture, bloody mary's, and fish fry's are all top notch as well. Any man who wouldn't enjoy Wisconsin culture isn't really a man in my book and may very well be a communist.

I'm not sure I get the love for South Carolina or Tennessee so much over Georgia. Don't get me wrong, those states have a lot to offer and a lot of nice places to live. Especially don't get the love for South Carolina. I guess the South Carolina beaches?

Georgia has three pro sports franchises and an MLS team. Atlanta has at least as much major entertainment options as any southern city. Atlanta gets all the concerts, theater tours, etc. that any other large city might get.

Georgia has the 10th most fortune 500 companies (18) of any state, more than North Carolina (13) and almost twice Tennessee (10) and South Carolina (0) combined.

It's two public flagships are ranked #38 and #48 in US News. South Carolina has #75 & # 117, Tennessee has #103 and no second flagship. And unlike those states, a student with a 3.75 GPA can go to either of Georgia's flagships for zero tuition (as well as any other state university).

Georgia doesn't have the smoky mountains, but it does have the blue ridge mountains less than an hour north of Atlanta, and its a shorter drive to the Great Smokey Mountains from Atlanta than from Nashville. Georgia does have Savannah. I can be in either Tennessee or South Carolina in two hours...the weather isn't that different.

It's a shorter drive from Atlanta to Destin than it is from Charlotte to the Outer Banks.

You can pretty much fly anywhere without a layover from the Atlanta airport, the world's biggest.

I'm not some huge Georgia stan by any means, but I'm always kind of curious how it doesn't rate when other states in the region do, and I've spent quite a lot of time in all of them. A big part of it I suppose is that there isn't like a mental picture of what Georgia looks like from a topology perspective compared to what people thing of for rolling hills of Tennessee or North Carolina.

But this is literally in suburban Atlanta, my kids have sat here many times:

And this is maybe an hour north:

It's not the Rockies, but Georgia isn't merely flat red clay and pavement either.

The biggest knock I would think on Georgia is that it's mainly Atlanta, without multiple cities people think of as being attractive (the way you might think of Tennessee being a choice of Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville, Chattanooga). That's fair, if you're dead set against living in a huge city or its suburban satellites, I could see Georgia being a non-starter.

 

[HawkinK.C.1]

To me, it's all about the people......or the lack of them, in my case, since I don't really like people.

 

[mauricehawki]

For this exercise, let's take out factors like politics, economics/cost of living, career and proximity to family. Assume you are apolitical, can afford to live anywhere, and you can take any family members/friends with you.

Factors to consider are geography, climate, food, recreation, entertainment and proximity to other states/places. Also assume you can live anywhere within the states you choose.

What's your top ten list?

I'll go with:

1) California
2) Florida
3) Texas
4) South Carolina
5) North Carolina
6) Arizona
7) Hawaii
8) Wisconsin
9) Colorado
10) Tennessee

Was hard to keep Oregon and Washington off the list, but sunshine was a big factor.

Had to put Wisconsin in there because going to a supper club and enjoying a relish trey, cheese curds, and a bacon wrapped filet washed down with an old fashioned is truly one of the great American experiences. The townie bars, drinking culture, bloody mary's, and fish fry's are all top notch as well. Any man who wouldn't enjoy Wisconsin culture isn't really a man in my book and may very well be a communist.

I thought people were leaving California in droves. No way would I consider living there.

 

[notlongago]

I think it's mostly if you were to consider what you like in terms of weather, geography and access to entertainment.

what if your entertainment is heavily influenced by political policies?

 

[kc78]

That's a hard question to answer because every person is going to have different reasons for wanting to live somewhere. While some may love the beach, others may prefer the wilderness or Mountains. If we're ignoring economics or politics then that leaves a lot of places open.

For me it would be
1. So-Cal
2. Florida
3. Colorado
4. Hawaii
5. Virginia

Outside of those, nothing else really stands out as a place I'd definitely want to move to. All the other states have pro's and con's. And so do these, especially if you consider politics (Which makes me cringe at my current home in Florida) or economics (If I tried to live in So-Cal).

 

[An Iowa fan]

Iowa
Nevada
Florida
Hawaii
That's it. That's the list.

 

[The Tradition]

I've got to say, even though it's expensive here, Northern Virginia is a terrific place to live because of the proximity to so many things to do within ~3 hours. You've got all the pro sports leagues, access to major college sports, beaches, mountains, wineries/breweries/distilleries, museums (most of which are free), so much history - civil war, revolutionary war, and earlier settlements. I'd put it in my top 5 - but only the Northern half, not Southern VA.

Yeah, we lived in Virginia Beach for about two years when I was in the Coast Guard.

Mrs. Tradition (no pics) hated it there. Especially the winters. Cold and rainy, but never really cold enough for snow. Just cold and rainy.

 

[Formerly Rockymtnole]

Source?

www.nobodybelievesourgraphics.com

 

[kc78]

what if your entertainment is heavily influenced by political policies?

So you're wanting to party with Madison Cawthorn? I think you want to be in DC then.

 

[BioHawk]

Illinois is far higher than I would have thought but a lot of people love living in Chicago. Then again, New York is pretty high as well so I guess that's just the consequence of people liking where they are living. Interesting that Florida is so low, but then I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

 

[The Tradition]

Illinois is far higher than I would have thought but a lot of people love living in Chicago. Then again, New York is pretty high as well so I guess that's just the consequence of people liking where they are living. Interesting that Florida is so low, but then I guess I shouldn't be surprised.

It's the whole "Florida Man" thing. We're trying to scare the retirees away, but it's not really working.

 

[notlongago]

So you're wanting to party with Madison Cawthorn? I think you want to be in DC then.

More on the shooting and hunting end of the spectrum

 

[Nole Lou]

The big limitation for me is the cold and snow. I have a limit of just how much I could take. If I could wipe out the weather, I could definitely go for like Bozeman MT or something like that, or my hometown of Buffalo NY. But cold and snow is a dealbreaker.

I definitely did like Southern California when I was there, I could choose there if finances were not object, I think. Although it might be one place with worse traffic than Atlanta.

I've really not spent any time in the Southwest besides Houston, and I could live in Texas, but if where I live north of Atlanta is the baseline, Texas doesn't do anything for me better than current. I could live in any of the states surrounding Georgia pretty much in the right situation.

I do like that living in Atlanta is a pretty great place for a political moderate. It's a diverse area made up of people from all over and even well out into the suburbs you're not in redneck heaven, while also not being subject to a radical progressive agenda, thanks to being fairly conservative at the state level.

 

[BelemNole]

I'm not sure I get the love for South Carolina or Tennessee so much over Georgia. Don't get me wrong, those states have a lot to offer and a lot of nice places to live. Especially don't get the love for South Carolina. I guess the South Carolina beaches?

Georgia has three pro sports franchises and an MLS team. Atlanta has at least as much major entertainment options as any southern city. Atlanta gets all the concerts, theater tours, etc. that any other large city might get.

Georgia has the 10th most fortune 500 companies (18) of any state, more than North Carolina (13) and almost twice Tennessee (10) and South Carolina (0) combined.

It's two public flagships are ranked #38 and #48 in US News. South Carolina has #75 & # 117, Tennessee has #103 and no second flagship. And unlike those states, a student with a 3.75 GPA can go to either of Georgia's flagships for zero tuition (as well as any other state university).

Georgia doesn't have the smoky mountains, but it does have the blue ridge mountains less than an hour north of Atlanta, and its a shorter drive to the Great Smokey Mountains from Atlanta than from Nashville. Georgia does have Savannah. I can be in either Tennessee or South Carolina in two hours...the weather isn't that different.

It's a shorter drive from Atlanta to Destin than it is from Charlotte to the Outer Banks.

You can pretty much fly anywhere without a layover from the Atlanta airport, the world's biggest.

I'm not some huge Georgia stan by any means, but I'm always kind of curious how it doesn't rate when other states in the region do, and I've spent quite a lot of time in all of them. A big part of it I suppose is that there isn't like a mental picture of what Georgia looks like from a topology perspective compared to what people thing of for rolling hills of Tennessee or North Carolina.

But this is literally in suburban Atlanta, my kids have sat here many times:

And this is maybe an hour north:

It's not the Rockies, but Georgia isn't merely flat red clay and pavement either.

The biggest knock I would think on Georgia is that it's mainly Atlanta, without multiple cities people think of as being attractive (the way you might think of Tennessee being a choice of Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville, Chattanooga). That's fair, if you're dead set against living in a huge city or its suburban satellites, I could see Georgia being a non-starter.

Beaches. When people say South Carolina they're talking about Hilton Head, etc.

 

[joelbc1]

So basically it's about climate and access to entertainment?

This is hard because I havn't been to that many places in my memory.

1. Cali
2. Florida
3. Tennessee
4. South Carolina
5. Wisconsin
6. Michigan
7. Ohio
8. Indiana
9. Oklahoma
10. Maryland

Places that I might consider if I actually had been there or remember being there.

Colorado - Never been
Texas - Was there only as an infant, no memory of the state
North Carolina - Only been in the airport on a connecting flight
Alaska - Never been

Oklahoma?
it’s Kansas with a football team. OKC is pretty sweet but damn, there’s a lot of real poverty spread all over the rest of the state.
A couple of golf courses worth playing but it certainly is no “destination” for this lad.

 

[mnole03]

Colorado is trash. Most of it looks like Afghanistan and it’s dry with wild temperature swings. Not even worth visiting, nevermind living here.

 

[nolesincebirth]

I’ve been vacationing a bit in New England lately and I’m really loving it up there. The cold doesn’t bother me much but the length of the winters could be an issue. But, I’m willing to give it a shot.

Maine
New Hampshire
Tennessee
North Carolina
Florida
Virginia
Texas

Btw, I live in NJ. It’s not nearly as bad as people think. It is a GREAT place to raise a family but property costs and taxes are obscene.

 

[Nole Lou]

Beaches. When people say South Carolina they're talking about Hilton Head, etc.

Yeah, that's all I could figure. I think I would rather drive 30-40 minutes longer to Hilton Head (Atlanta vs Greenville-Spartanburg), and live in a world class city with 3 pro sports teams, two top-50 universities, 18 fortune 500 companies, an international airport, etc.

Again, I like South Carolina...it's just weird the kind of perception is like that it pops up, that a half hour closer to the same beach makes it seem so much better, when it has so much less to offer otherwise.