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NewYorkUpstate.com compiled data from community research site niche.com to rank every community in America, determining the best places to live, including a locale in the Hudson Valley.
According to the study, Niche uses more than a dozen key "grades" to each community in its ranking using data from sources such as the U.S. Census, National Parks Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Bureau of Labor Statistics and other agencies.
Those “grades” are then weighed, with cost of living and higher education rates the highest at 12.5 percent followed by housing and public schools (10 percent); diversity (7.5 percent); composite overall, crime and safety, family, health and fitness, jobs, nightlife, outdoor activities, walkability, weather (5 percent) and shortest commute (2.5 percent).
The report only includes restaurants from upstate - which is considered by the website to be areas north of Westchester and Rockland counties - in the rankings.
The study highlighted Spackenkill, which was the only Hudson Valley hamlet to make a the list, as the 22nd most desirable place to live in upstate New York. The report highlights:
Spackenkill (Dutchess County):
- Population: 4,258;
- Median home value: $278,600;
- Median household income: $119,833;
- Overall grade: A;
- Public Schools: A;
- Diversity: B+;
- Good for Families: A+;
- Diversity grade: B+;
- Jobs grade: B.
According to Niche: "Spackenkill is a town in New York with a population of 4,258. Spackenkill is in Dutchess County and is one of the best places to live in New York. Living in Spackenkill offers residents a suburban feel and most residents own their homes. In Spackenkill there are a lot of restaurants, coffee shops, and parks. Many retirees live in Spackenkill and residents tend to lean conservative. The public schools in Spackenkill are highly rated."
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