Best Places to Live: Six Spots in Northern Virginia Make Top 10 List

Life is good in Northern Virginia -- six cities and counties in Virginia made a top 10 "best places to live" in the nation list Tuesday, published by financial news site 24/7 Wall St. (With so many accolades, it made us think of the Garrison Keillor quote: "Well, that's the news from Lake Wobegon, where all the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all the children are above average.")

To determine the best counties to live in, 24/7 Wall St. developed an index based on three social measures — educational attainment, poverty rate, and life expectancy — and ranked counties (and cities) based on their well-being. The areas also have low unemployment rates and high health insurance coverage rates.

Here's a look at what they're saying about Northern Virginia and where each city or county ranked on the top 10 list:

#1 Falls Church: "Falls Church is relatively small, with a total area of just 2.2 square miles. The 13,000 people who call it home are more likely to be healthy, college educated, and financially secure than residents of any other county or county equivalent in the United States."

#2 Arlington County: "Arlington has one of the most college-educated populations in the country. While less than 30% of all U.S. adults have a bachelor’s degree, 72.9% of Arlington adults have a college education — the second highest share of any county."

#3 Fairfax County: "Many area residents have high-paying jobs with nearby government contractors. Major defense contractor General Dynamics, which received some $13.63 billion in federal dollars in the 2015 government fiscal year, is headquartered within commuting distance of Fairfax County and is one of the area’s largest employers."

#4 Loudoun County: "...the typical area household earns $123,453 annually, more than any other U.S. county. In addition, life expectancy at birth in Loudoun County is 83.4 years, or 4.5 years longer than the national average."

#8 Fairfax City: "As in many other wealthy areas in Virginia, some high earners in Fairfax are likely employed by the government or government contractors. Fairfax is located just outside the Beltway, within commuting distance to the nation’s capital and surrounding areas."

#10 City of Alexandria: "Situated on the west bank of the Potomac River and within the Washington D.C. Beltway, Alexandria residents benefit from high-paying jobs in and around the nation’s capital. The typical area household earns over $89,134 a year, well above the $53,889 national median income."

Read the entire report, and find more information about the counties and cities listed here, as well as the localities outside of Virginia that made the list.

PHOTO: Set on the banks of the Potomac River at The Washington Sailing Marina, Indigo Landing offers a peaceful indoor/outdoor retreat year-round in Alexandria. The restaurant is closed Mondays and Tuesdays. Photo courtesy of Indigo Landing