Best Cities for Remote Workers
Harbor and boats at Utah Lake State Park in Provo, Utah. istockphoto.com/phleum
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A Utah city leads a list of best places for people who don't want to commute. All the top cities offer an abundance of urban amenities, scenic surroundings and affordable housing.
Provo, Utah tops Apartment List’s index of best places for remote workers to live because of its affordable housing, abundance of urban amenities and outdoor recreation spots, like Utah Lake and Provo Canyon, and the presence of Brigham Young University.
The other cities in the top 10 are:
- Fort Collins, Colorado
- Boise, Idaho
- Raleigh, North Carolina
- Tempe, Arizona
- Austin, Texas
- Beaverton, Oregon
- Denver, Colorado
- Ashville, North Carolina
- Ann Arbor, Michigan
The remote work trend has greatly accelerated because of the pandemic. Real estate experts have said homeowners in expensive major cities are exiting to the suburbs and homebuyers and renters are moving to less-pricey secondary markets. Nevertheless, a recent Apartment List survey shows that while remote workers want more space at a lower cost they don't want to sacrifice urban conveniences and natural surroundings.
Apartment List employed several metrics to develop its index: overall prevalence and satisfaction of remote-friendly jobs; affordable housing; and access to urban and natural amenities. Based on its research of 232 U.S. cities, it found that the places that are best for remote workers have:
A significant college presence. There are four college towns in the top 10: Provo (Brigham Young); Fort Collins (Colorado State University); Tempe (Arizona State); and Ann Arbor (University of Michigan). Although the other cities in the top 10 are not known as college towns, all except Beaverton are home to at least one major university.
College towns typically are rich in urban amenities such as nightlife, entertainment and restaurants, according to Apartment List, and they also tend to have more affordable housing.
Booming tech markets. Technology hubs are some of the fastest-growing U.S. cities. Although technology centers like Denver have grown less affordable in recent years, they’re still less expensive than other major cities.
Rising rent prices. The best cities for remote workers are getting less affordable. For example, seven of the top 10 have year-over-year rent growth that exceeds the national average. Boise’s rent prices, for example, are up 31% over the past year, Apartment List wrote.
To see Apartment List’s spreadsheet of the 232 cities it reviewed click here.
Jean Dimeo is managing editor of Route Fifty.
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