Tampa Ranked Among America's Best Big Cities

When it comes to America’s best big cities for living, Money magazine names Tampa among the country’s finest. In fact, it deemed the city the best in the entire southeast.

The magazine’s report involved a deep dive into American cities with a population of more than 300,000. That added up to 63 in all with Tampa being only one of five selected as the best of the best. Ranking factors included such metrics as affordable housing, a strong job market, healthcare accessibility, culture and open space. Extra points were given for strong public schools and low crime numbers, according to the magazine.

When all was said and done, Money let the numbers decide which cities to deem the best in the Southeast, Northeast, Midwest, Southwest and West.

Tampa came out tops in the Southeast for with its $121,200 median home price, $1,800 average property tax and 5.6 percent unemployment rate.

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Money’s writers went on to list the city’s many recent accomplishments as icing on the cake. They included the Lightning’s near win of the Stanley Cup Finals against Chicago, the city’s host status for the 15th International Indian Film Academy Awards and the Tampa Museum of Art’s new building, among others.

“Do the people of Tampa even bother to brag about their beaches anymore,” the writers asked.

Money noted that Tampa’s charm isn’t just found in its real estate prices, but also the potential the city holds. With more major name companies, such as Bristol-Myers Squibb and Amazon, laying roots in the Bay area, the city is on track for a 15 percent job growth rate over the next five years, according to Moody’s.

“I think it’s going to boom,” Money quoted Lightning owner Jeffrey Vinik as saying.

Others on the list of best big cities included Pittsburg for the Northeast, Denver for the West, Omaha for the Midwest and Mesa for the Southwest.

Check out the complete rankings on Money.com.

What are your thoughts? Does Tampa have the potential to become a boom town?

Photo courtesy of the City of Tampa Facebook page