“This ranking is particularly rewarding because it takes into account not only city services and infrastructure but also our residents,” Greer City Administrator Ed Driggers said. “We work hard to make the city an attractive place to live and raise a family. It’s those who call the City of Greer home, participate in recreational and athletic programs, and participate in planning the city’s future that truly make it special.”
ChamberofCommerce.org ranked more than 2,500 cities with populations of more than 25,000 by five essential factors:
• Employment (number of establishments, median earnings)
• Housing (owner-occupied housing with a mortgage, monthly housing costs)
• Quality of life (work commute, poverty levels)
• Education (percentage with a bachelor’s degree or higher)
• Health (obesity ratios).
The City of Greer placed fifth in the South Carolina rankings, joining Simpsonville (second) and Greenville (fourth) in the top five. Rock Hill ranked first and Mount Pleasant was third.
According to the US Census Bureau, tens of millions of Americans relocate every year to improve their living situation in one way or another: some for reduced cost of living and housing, others for better employment opportunities, and others for an improved quality of life outside of finances. The Best Cities to Live report gives these families a concrete list of cities to consider before making the big move.
For these rankings, researchers at ChamberofCommerce.org gathered information from both the U.S. Census Bureau and the Centers for Disease Control. Rankings were then determined by designating different sets of data to one of the five factors and assigning appropriate weights to each.