McAllen in Top 10 of Most Affordable Cities for Working Adults, Best Places to Live in Texas

by Office of Communications | Jan 19, 2024

Financial services website lists McAllen as #10 affordable U.S. Cities based on priorities ranking of working adults; U.S. News ranks McAllen as #9 best places to live in Texas

For working adults looking to navigate rising costs and fight the stress of inflation, Empower – a financial services company – set out to find the most affordable U.S. cities. To create its rankings, it analyzed 113 U.S. cities across multiple categories, including data on home prices, average income, cost of living, and employment rates. Of course, affordability is not the only criteria when deciding where to live, so it also asked 800 working adults about what they look for in a city and where they want to live the most. Based on the ratings and results of the survey, McAllen was ranked as the number 10 most affordable city for working adults.

Cost of living (55%) was the highest priority for working adults when choosing where to live, as was a a low cost of living which can help people save more and build up their nest egg. Being close to family (30%), safety (28%), and employment opportunities (27%) were also top priorities for this group.

According to the website, McAllen is highlighted as a bustling city in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas.  With plenty of parks, restaurants and local attractions, including the largest single-story library in the county and of course, home to Quinta Mazatlán World Birding Center, there’s a lot to explore and enjoy in McAllen.  McAllen residents also spend less than the national media sale price on home purchases, along with expenses like food, transportation and health care.

In fact, according to U.S. News, McAllen is also the number 9th best place to live in Texas, it is a vibrant metro area and a major center for retail, international trade, tourism and manufacturing. A high quality of life, an abundance of medical facilities and a young, bicultural community are additional draws.

“For those of who choose to live and work in McAllen, we know that in all of these categories, McAllen continues to rank high for its residents to be able to enjoy a high quality of life, live in a safe and good home and earn a decent living with a bustling and growing job market,” said McAllen Mayor Javier Villalobos.

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