Are you young and single? Craving for a fast pace busy life where you can meet a lot of different people, share your stories, learn from others and have a good time? No, this is not a dating service ad, nor a bartender opening. This is the best cities for singles, an article our team at RealEstateAgent.com came up with to help those of tender age (or not!) who want to live without strings attached, no worries regarding the best school districts, cars to drive kids to sports activities and other family things.
Usually, when we analyze the best cities for anything, we leave the reveal to the end or we talk about each specific city at a time, but today we’re going to do it differently. We’ll reveal them, and then analyze what makes these the best cities for singles and how each of the named cities are in relation to that criteria.
Here we go, best cities for singles:
- Miami
- San Francisco
- Boston
- Austin
- Las Vegas
Ok, now hold on. Read on to understand these choices that might seem unorthodox to you. We will lay out our point of view and everything will be explained – even the reason why New York is not on the list.
This is what we believe are the factors that make or break a city when living single:
Mobility
Mobility is a big factor when analyzing the best cities for singles. Cities where cars are a necessity for existence are hard for single people, who need to make a big money commitment for an asset that is just superfluous for one individual only; you have 4 other vacant seats. Plus; you want to be free to drink and have fun. Being single is about being free and, in a town where a car is a necessity, every time you go out, there’s someone in your group – sometimes it’s you! – who’s just miserable because he/she is the designated driver. Who wants that? And when it comes to work, once mobility is hardened, your freedom also suffers. Living close to work becomes a health matter and a financial necessity and, with that, you miss out on exploring other areas outside of your comfort zone – thus losing the ability to meet diversity. If you’re a narcissist, we guess that’s fine; but looking at the root of being single, when you don’t have diversity you are confined to the same old life all the time – might as well move back to your parent’s house.
So, for those reasons, a city like Los Angeles loses its appeal. Yes, Uber has made everyone’s lives easier, but it’s still not enough. Plus, what residents of cities with a wide array of public transportation – like San Francisco and New York - will tell you is that the commute can be one of the best places to meet people and when you drive alone in your car you will never do that – unless you hit someone else’s car and fall in love; but that’s too much of a romantic comedy plot and not exactly real life.
A clear winner in this category is the city of Houston. With an extensive light rail system as well as a highly developed network of buses, Houston is among the cities with the best public transportation systems, and there are plenty of ways to get around and meet new people! What’s more, Houston has a warm atmosphere that pervades almost every aspect of daily life, and this laid back vibe makes it easy to meet new people?
Cost
Mobility has a weight on cost, which is the second variable we used for determining the best cities for singles. The majority of the single population is of a young age and that means most of them are still building their wealth, so they need to balance all the excitement of the fast-paced living with a lean budget - especially with the costs of superior education being so high. For that reason, we left New York out in favor of San Francisco. We feel they occupy the same “metropolis” slot – but San Francisco has (i) better mobility with more options like integrated public buses, subways, trains, cable cars and the famous F-line heritage streetcar and (ii) yes, even higher real estate prices (for renting, and most of the times for buying a house too) but the jobs usually pay better there.
New York is more inclusive, in the way that there are more low-income jobs (especially because of tourism), while San Francisco is heavy on the tech business, with higher paying jobs overall, so it balances out. And, while New York Real Estate Agents will say their colleges have free tuition for residents with low income, Real Estate Agents in San Francisco CA have an advantage when convincing the young single person with the sound argument that anyone - regardless of income - living for more than a year on SF has free college tuition, which is a great feature for a city of young individuals looking to strive.
Now, Austin is the city where singles will have the lowest income, but also fairly low costs. Las Vegas is almost too expensive because it’s not very diversified (it’s all centered around the casinos) and Boston is good enough. But, out of that equation, Miami is definitely the greatest pick, as it has that big city feel, but with really affordable costs. For instance:Realtors in Miami FL always boast when making the case for the city, that – aside from the beaches (one of the greatest places to meet people and flirt!) and the busy and culturally diverse nightlife – Florida has no state income tax, which is a big paycheck downer on the beginning of your career.
Another good pick is Houston, Texas; with relatively high median wages and low cost of living, Houston will prove a great place for singles looking to meet new people. After all, if you don’t have to worry about money, you can put all your focus into making new connections. What’s more, the top real estate agents in Houston Texas will readily tell you that home prices in the city are 24% lower than the national average. Nothing frees you up to meet people like owning your own home!
Entertainment Options
Moving on to the entertainment options. This is the variable that zeroed-in these big cities. Notice how no small towns are on the list? Well… that’s because you only go to suburbs to relax; it’s the opposite of the single life. The best cities for singles have a lot of different entertainment options all the time. Not only so singles can enjoy themselves and recharge from the fast-paced life they’re living, but because those are some of the finest places to meet people. Say you are very specific and you like high brow Iranian movies. Going to an indie cinema will provide more chances of meeting someone you enjoy being with – as a friend or as something more – than going to a NASCAR racing event, or something. So, again, that’s why we feel big cities with diversity in a big market (like Miami, Boston, and San Francisco) are some of the best cities for singles. Again, big ups for Miami here. Florida’s tourist vacation – thanks to Disney World, cheap outlet malls, and a large population - will provide you with many many great places to meet people and amuse yourself. Like sports? Miami has a team in all the major leagues: the Miami Heat in the NBA, Miami Marlins in MLB, Miami Dolphins in the NFL. If you like Hockey, they have the Florida Panthers nearby and will soon have a David Beckham owned soccer team on MLS. Movies? You can watch them in English or Spanish! You have the high-end designer brands, opera houses, and museum, but also the niched gritty artistry in Miami Art District (the Wynwood neighborhood). World-class nightclubs and salsa nights at Calle Ocho in Little Havana. Houston has its own collection of things to see and do, from cultural attractions showcasing its arts and music culture to sports like football and basketball. In Houston, you’ll never run out of things to do!
Networking
Now, our very last variable is networking. When you don’t have a family close by, when you don’t have roots, you need help networking with people, not only for romantic purposes but for anything, really! Most of the jobs people get are out of a friend’s referral; even if it’s just a simple “hey, that Starbucks is hiring and it pays pretty decent”. And that leads us to affinity and connection. A key factor for single people to get comfortable and create a networking environment is the presence of other single people. Single people don’t want to feel that “peer pressure” when seeing someone happily with a family and wondering “is there something wrong with me?”. No; there’s nothing wrong with you. People have different timing, that’s all. But anyways, a big factor when determining the best cities for singles is the presence of other people in that same mindset. Sort of like the famous real estate relationship between supply and demand. And this is where Real Estate Agents in Boston MA get their strongest argument to prove The City on a Hill is one of the best places to meet people in America, as it has an impressive 70% of its population composed of unmarried people. San Francisco also does really well, and it has a great balance of almost 50% women and 50% men. But Austin and Las Vegas deserve to be discussed at a greater length here.
For those seeking a more metropolitan population center, why not move to Houston? Houston is one of America’s largest cities by population, which makes it a great place to meet people and find a partner! The more people, the more options, right? Add to that the excellently low price of housing and you have yourself a recipe for a great single’s town!
If you need to combine cost, mobility, entertainment options and networking… wouldn’t college towns be the best thing here? Yes and no. And the no here is especially in relation to the “love” aspect of it. Yes, college towns are a great Venn Diagram between the best of the big cities and the best of the small cities. You have a low cost of living, transportation will hardly be a problem, you have a lot of good cultural vibrant life and, obviously, a lot of single people to network with. But, most of the population of a college town is made of college students that, soon after they graduate, relocate somewhere else, right? The more you stay after you graduate, the more possible romantic networking you will do with younger and younger people. After a while, that becomes creepy. So, that pushes college towns out of our best cities for singles target, but we kept Austin – however down the list – because although the city is in itself a college town, it is also Texas’ capital, and, by being close to humongous markets like Dallas and Houston, makes the city an interesting mix of all of that. Ask any realtors in Austin TX and he/she will tell you that Austin is proud to be “weird” - and single people benefit from that diversity.
And finally, Las Vegas. Often called “the grown-up's Disneyland” it’s one of the cities with the most touristic visits to America, and around 95%+ is composed of adults. So, it’s like the Airbnb of dating, if you think about it. Probably one of the best places to meet people (if not the best) considering it was built as a resort city, but, considering all the other variables, we put it as the last of the best cities for singles. Real Estate Agents in Las Vegas will bet you’ll change your mind once you move there, learn the city’s tricks and feel Las Vegas as a resident and not a tourist, but looking at hard numbers it just seems it can be more expensive compared with the other cities – especially if you decide to gamble and lose it all – and it’s not diverse in the sense that the city lives and breathe by its monothematic proposal of hedonism; networking around that can get tiring even for singles. But for a short-term lease of 6 months? It can be the best!
So, these were our best cities for singles. What are your thoughts as real estate agents? And as a single person (for the ones among us that are)? Was Boston a surprise? Do you agree with Miami as our top city? Are you still mad about New York being out? Which other cities could and should be added to this list? Make your points, real estate agents! Tell us in the comments; it will be a great opportunity for other single real estate agents to mingle and network. The first round of drinks is on us!
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