Franklin Named One of the Best Places to Live by Money Magazine

Franklin makes Money List
Fans line the hillside of Arrington Vineyards, the largest winery in Middle Tennessee, for the annual Harvest Festival concert from co-owner Kix Brooks of legendary country music duo Brooks & Dunn. Courtesy of VisitFranklin.com

Money – the digital destination for personal finance and news – announces its annual ranking of the Best Places to Live featuring 50 towns and cities where the economy, job growth, and housing market remained strong despite COVID-19 disruptions.

This year, Money looked at towns and cities with a population of at least 25,000 and ranked the Best Places to Live putting the greatest emphasis on economic factors, like employment opportunities, as well as supply and demand for homes, cost of living, quality of schools, racial and economic diversity, and health and safety.

Money’s No. 1 pick for Best Places to Live this year is Evans, Georgia, which is brimming with good-paying jobs thanks to its proximity to Augusta as well as affordable homes, top schools, access to arts and culture, and a diverse population, which some residents attribute to its military presence.

Two Middle Tennessee cities made the list – Franklin (#8) and Mt Juliet (#22).

“This year, given the general uncertainty around where and how we’ll live, our list looks a little different,” said Prachi Bhardwaj, lead reporter of Money’s Best Places to Live. “We shifted our priorities to pay more attention to cities that aren’t just doing well now, but that show great promise and stability for the next five to ten years. We also included suburban towns situated further away from major metros and have more industry diversity than you’ve seen from our list in years past.”

Why Franklin made the list?

Money writes:
This Tennessee town has been a strong contender in our list for the past few years, twice ranking in the top 10. Located just 20 miles south of Nashville, Franklin has seen a 44% job growth in the last 10 years, matched by a 33% increase in population.

This growth has been due in part to healthcare and manufacturing companies like Optum and Mars Petcare coming to Franklin in the last decade. Other major employers, like Nissan North America and Community Health Systems, have continued to expand. Jobs in the area are expected to increase by 10% in the next five years.

Residents of Franklin have an median household income of $110,000. The median price for a family home is $495,000, compared to homes in neighboring Brentwood, which typically sell for more than $550,000.

Another big reason people are moving to Franklin: the quality of its schools. Franklin forms part of the highly-rated Williamson County School District. Franklin High is the 7th best in Tennessee, as ranked by US News, and its students consistently rank in the 97th percentile in the state end-of-course exams.

Money’s Top 20 Best Places to Live include:

Evans, GA
Parker, CO
Meridian, Idaho
Rockwall, Texas
Columbia, Maryland
Westfield, Indiana
Syracuse, Utah
Franklin, Tennessee
Woodbury, Minnesota
Morrisville, North Carolina
Ashburn, Virginia
South Windsor, Connecticut
St Peters, Missouri
Chelmsford, Massachusetts
Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin
Mount Laurel, New Jersey
Woodstock, Georgia
Broomfield, Colorado
Abington, Pennsylvania
Midlothian, Virginia

For Money’s complete list of the Best Places to Live, click here. To learn more on the methodology of the ranking, click here.

ABOUT MONEY:
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