Cedar Rapids Scores High for Best Place to Live After the ‘Rona Goes Away

Hello, Cedar Rapids, and congratulations. We did it again.

Business Insider ranks Cedar Rapids at #11 in their survey of Best Cities to Live in After the Coronavirus.

In Cedar Rapids, 75.9% of households spend less than 30% of their income on housing, the 13th-highest share among metro areas. Its pre-coronavirus unemployment rate was 3%, 0.5 percentage points lower than the national rate in February.

Cedar Rapids also ranks strongly in other surveys. One reason why it scores well is that City-Data says the cost of living index here is low, at 87.3 out of 100.

Other nearby Iowa towns and cities also score as great places to live. US News and Business Reports rank Des Moines high on their top places to live at #5.

USA Today ranks North Liberty as a great place to call home with a Top 50 Best Cities list ranking coming in at #39. Not to be outdone, Spencer Iowa comes in at #29 in the same USA Today survey.

So what is it that makes Iowa towns so desirable? Low cost of living, safer communities, and a decent opportunity to make a good living with jobs providing a fair wage.

According to City-Data, the city of Cedar Rapids has seen 9% growth since the year 2000. The top five employers include Rockwell Collins, Mercy Medical, and St. Luke's.

As the strange year of 2020 continues, everything "normal" seem to be changing every day. But thankfully, one thing remains the same - Iowa still ranks high as a great place to live.