Virginia Communities Make 2019 Best Places To Live List

VIRGINIA — Virginia claimed a few spots on Money magazine's 100 Best Places to Live in America list for 2019.

The new rankings are based on more than 80 types of data tied to the economy, cost of living, diversity of population, education, housing, health and safety, amenities, and ease of living. The magazine only considered towns with populations of 50,000 or more. Any place that had more than double the national crime risk, less than 85 percent of its state's median household income, or a lack of ethnic diversity was eliminated.

Reporters also researched each community, interviewed residents and checked out neighborhoods. Places that made the list last year were not included in this year's ranking.

The highest ranked Virginia community is Fairfax County's Dranesville District at 14. Money magazine says it's one of the most wealthy communities on the list and boasts a low unemployment rate, quality schools and proximity to DC. Others making the list are Arlington at 30, Midlothian at 54 and Dale City at 77.

Leading the list was Clarksville, Tennessee, which is within commuting distance of Nashville and has a red-hot real estate market with millennials snapping up houses. The other top five places are Round Rock, Texas; Fishers, Indiana; the Fulton River District in Illinois; and Country Club Heights, North Carolina.

See Money's Best Places to Live in 2019 list here.

Includes reporting from Patch editor Kathleen Sturgeon