Local

Youngstown ranked No. 2, Warren No. 10 on list of happiest places to live in Ohio

By Chris Pugh
(William D. Lewis | Mahoning Matters)
(William D. Lewis | Mahoning Matters)

A new study says that Mahoning Valley has two of the happiest cities to live in Ohio.

The OhioRealEstateSource.com study shows Youngstown ranked No. 2 and Warren No. 10 in their findings.

Here is what the report said about Youngstown:

“For a city of 59,144 residents, it has many more restaurants and things to do than most Ohio cities. In fact, it ranked in the state’s top ten in this respect. Every 10,000 residents have 85 restaurants and 23 leisure activities to choose from. Their rating is not among the highest compared to other cities, but they still average 4.12 and 4.51 stars, respectively, out of five. Houses in Youngstown are the third-most affordable of all the 48 analyzed cities, costing $140,000, on average.”

Results were based on the following seven factors.

  • The number of restaurants in each city, based on Tripadvisor listings, relative to 10,000 residents, constituted 25% of the final score;
  • The average weighted rating for these restaurants, based on Tripadvisor rating from zero to five was worth 20% of the final score;
  • The number of things to do within each city, based on Tripadvisor listings, weighed 20% of the final score;
  • The average weighted rating for these activities, based on Tripadvisor rating from zero to five, was worth 15% of the final score;
  • The Air Quality Index (AQI) value came from AirNow.gov, measured as at July 18th, 2024. AQI ranges from zero to 500, where the lower the score is, the higher the air quality is. Values between zero and 50 are within the “Good” range, while those between 51 and 100 indicate a “Moderate” air quality level. AQI was worth 10% of the final score of this ranking;
  • Median house prices per listing are based on adverts published via Realtor for each city, as at July 18, 2024. This weighed 5% of the final score;
  • The number of property listings, relative to 10,000 residents, results from the same dataset from Realtor as above, current as of July 18th, 2024. This constituted the remaining 5% of the final score.

    • “We were surprised to see Youngstown rank second happiest city in Ohio,” a spokesman for the company said. “It is incredibly affordable, and while it is still finding its way economically after the departure of the steel mill, it presents a great opportunity to position itself as a start-up hub. It is a lively, affordable city with some of the kindest residents in Ohio.”

    Here is the full list:

    #

    City

    Median House Price ($)

    House Listings per 10k Residents

    Air Quality Index (0-500, where 0 is best)

    Restaurants per 10k Residents

    Average Rating of Restaurants (0-5, where 5 is best)

    Things To Do per 10k Residents

    Average Rating of Things To Do (0-5, where 5 is best)

    1

    Cincinnati

    299,900

    52.02

    39

    58.48

    4.16

    22.94

    4.63

    2

    Youngstown

    140,000

    56.81

    56

    84.54

    4.12

    22.66

    4.51

    3

    Dayton

    179,950

    75.62

    29

    51.71

    4.07

    20.45

    4.74

    4

    Dublin

    585,000

    36.53

    46

    36.12

    4.20

    15.92

    4.16

    5

    Canton

    199,450

    52.39

    53

    53.97

    4.17

    15.07

    4.44

    6

    Westerville

    459,900

    49.65

    46

    37.96

    4.04

    16.38

    4.72

    7

    Lakewood

    249,990

    24.97

    52

    29.80

    4.31

    10.27

    4.63

    8

    Lima

    199,950

    76.05

    17

    45.17

    4.05

    13.15

    4.43

    9

    Cleveland

    146,000

    40.98

    52

    42.73

    4.16

    15.57

    4.43

    10

    Warren

    169,900

    49.61

    56

    35.21

    4.31

    12.34

    4.45

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    This story was originally published August 27, 2024 at 8:31 AM.