A recent column in The New York Times proved something that those who live in Garland already knew to be true. The article listed the top places to live in the country and Garland was in the top 10. In addition, seven of those top 10 communities are in Texas.
Farhad Manjoo, writer of the article, compiled the list:
- Euless
- Woodlawn, Ohio
- Edgecliff Village
- Garland
- Grand Prairie
- Mesquite
- DeSoto
- Cedar Hill
- Brooklyn Center, Minnesota
- Forest Park, Ohio
He started with almost 17,000 places with a population that exceeded 1,000. He looked at:
- Jobs – Manjoo first compiled a list of the places with low unemployment and high median incomes.
- Lower climate risks – Next, he searched for places that will be least affected by climate change
in comparison to towns in his home state of California. - Racial diversity – The writer then checked on racial diversity as his belief is that most people prefer to live in a racially diverse location.
- Affordability – Lastly, Manjoo removed cities with high home prices.
His conclusion: “Once I had put in all my priorities, I was left with a list of cities and towns near Dallas that checked all my boxes. I was starting to see why so many people are moving to Texas,” he wrote.
He added that in the original group of cities, which included thousands of locations, information was gathered on over 30 metrics. Some of those included: school quality, crime rates and affordability
The information gathered was compiled into a quiz that helped people find the right location based on their personal priorities.
The writer also shared his opinion on why so many people from California are moving to Texas.
“I’ve lived in California nearly all my life, and it’s still more likely than not that I will remain here; reports of a sudden ‘exodus’ from the state are frequently exaggerated. Still, there’s plenty going wrong — soaring housing costs, devastating poverty and inequality and the cascading disasters brought about by a change in what was once our big selling point, the climate. Not a month goes by that I don’t wonder what I’m doing here.” Manjoo wrote.
If you’re looking for an affordable, economically vibrant city that is less likely to be damaged by climate change than many other American cities, our data shows why Texas is a new land of plenty.
He added that Dallas suburbs, such as Plano, McKinney, Garland, Euless and Allen showed to have less crime, and offered job opportunities, housing, great schools, good restaurants, clean air and racial diversity at a significant discount compared to the high cost of living in America’s coastal cities.
.“There are lots of places in America with jobs and lower climate risks or jobs and racial diversity, but if you want all three, Texas will take care of you best,” Manjoo wrote.