Some of us still remember the old Williamsburg, Brooklyn—a sketchy area a stone’s throw from Manhattan, best known for one famous steak house (Peter Luger’s), a large Orthodox Jewish enclave … and lots of empty buildings and random crime. Ah, memories. Then the artists started moving in. And the hipsters. And the boutiques, the uber-cool bars, the European beard–grooming salons, the artisanal pickle joints. And along with it all, the outrageous prices—the ones forcing out the very people who made the place famous.
How do you know when a New York City hipster mecca is over? When the median home price is $1,275,000, a one-bedroom rental runs $3,300 (or way more), and tourists clog the streets like water bugs in a pre-gentrified tenement. So what’s a craft beer–drinking, bike-commuting, EDM-loving, would-be home buyer to do?
Our data team mixed up a large batch of kale smoothies and set out to find the next hipster meccas sprouting up across the U.S. We took a deep dive into the 500 largest cities in the country in search of those that combine a fun, young, culture-rich urban experience with affordability for the long haul.
Here are the criteria we used:
Number of foodie hot spots: farm-to-table restaurants with Instagram-worthy dishes, food trucks, farmers markets, juice bars, and craft breweries.
Number of bike shops: Two wheels are now better than four.
Number of yoga studios: Come on, everyone needs yoga.
Number of cultural outlets: Music venues, indie movie theaters, and art galleries.
An increase in the population of 25- to 34-year-olds from 2013 to 2014, and in the percentage of people shopping for a home on realtor.com®, to show us where next-gen buyers are flocking.
Last, we ran a housing affordability check on each city to weed out the ones where home prices are through the roof. (See ya, San Francisco!) Check out the top 10 cities where you don’t have to shell out a fortune to live like a bohemian. Or just to live with your family in a cool, vibrant, emerging place.
1. Salt Lake City, UT
Big tech companies can be found in the Silicon Slopes.
ferrantraite/iStock
Media home price: $355,000
Sure, you know Silicon Valley, but do you know Silicon Slopes? In Salt Lake City, affordable real estate, an educated workforce, and a decent transit system have lured big tech companies such as Adobe and Electronic Arts, as well as a slew of startups. And along with them, armies of young techies eager to work hard and play harder.
Besides all the outdoorsy things to do in the majestic Rocky Mountains, there are plenty of impressive entertainment options. The Sundance Film Festival in nearby Park City each winter, of course, brings in thousands of filmmakers, actors, and fans—and locals get special deals on tickets. Plenty of those filmmakers decided to put down roots here. In summer, the Twilight Concert Series assembles indie and hip-hop powerhouses such as MGMT, Empire of the Sun, The Nationals, and Ludacris for free!
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2. Richmond, VA
A creative center for young artists, writers, and musicians
Ron Cogswell/Flickr
Medan home price: $170,000
A classic city with rich history that was once plagued by crime, Richmond has now rebranded itself as a creative center for young folk. Artists, writers, bloggers, crafters, and punk garage bands have all convened on this Southern metropolis.
People in Richmond take music so seriously that they organized a crowd-funding campaign in 2014 to bring the Foo Fighters to town. Sept. 17, the day of the concert, is now the official “Foo Fighters Day RVA”—signed and stamped by Richmond’s mayor.
Farm-to-table eating? People in Richmond have been doing so even before you ever heard about farmers markets. The 17th Street Market has been oozing local charm since 1737, making it one of the oldest public markets in the nation. Nose-to-tail eating? Yeah, they’ve got that covered, too.
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3. Asheville, NC
A hippie Southern enclave with a weird sense of humor
Clark Mackey/Flickr
Median home price: $350,000
No, you’re not dreaming—that suspiciously hairy “nun” roaming the streets on a giant bike is one of the more commonplace daily sights you’ll experience in this funky place. In fact, this hippie Southern enclave with a proudly weird sense of humor has not only one, but three biking nuns—known as Sister Bad Habit, Sister Hairy Mary, and Sister Sauerkraut. In case you were wondering.
Dubbed the “New Freak Capital of the U.S.” by Rolling Stone, Asheville is also home to naturalists, bluegrass fiddlers, folk artists, crafters, and pedigreed chefs. It’s also been dubbed “Beer City USA” thanks to its more than two dozen mostly excellent craft breweries across town.
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4. Pittsburgh, PA
Roberto Clemente Bridge
Richard Cummins/Getty Images
Median home price: $149,900.
The Steel City is having a huge cultural renaissance lately. Everywhere you turn, there’s a new round of one-of-a-kind shops, art galleries, breweries, and jazz clubs. It’s also a rising center for major film production (serving as New York City and Gotham City stand-ins for, respectively, “The Avengers” and “The Dark Knight Rises”), contributing to the city’s economy as well as its pop culture cachet.
Hip neighborhoods such as Lawrenceville, Mt. Washington, and Shadyside offer a wide range of cutting-edge mixology bars for adventurous drinkers. And Pittsburgh made No. 10 on Zagat’s list of the top U.S. food cities, which cited a James Beard-nominated restaurant as well as “incredible sandwiches”—some notably stuffed with fries and coleslaw. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.
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5. Minneapolis, MN
A snowy city that embraces urban cycling culture
Bjorn/Flickr
Median home price: $251,000.
Winters may be fierce here, but don’t expect its residents to cower inside. Minneapolis is ranked the third most bike-friendly city in the country by Bicycling magazine. The snowy city embraces urban cycling culture with dedicated bike lanes, racks, and paved trails. With a solid 4% of commuters biking to work (eight times the national average), biking isn’t just a hobby here—it’s a lifestyle.
As America’s most literate city, Minneapolis is also home to Open Book, the largest literary and book arts center in the U.S. So put down your cellphone and pick up a book to read with your pour-over coffee.
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6. Ann Arbor, MI
Vibrant culture and fun-loving crowds
Andypiper/Flickr
Median home price: $349,450.
As home to the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor owes much of its coolness to the university’s famously fun-loving crowd, and the culture that has sprung up to keep them amused. Pop-up diners, indie movie theaters, yoga studios, artisanal cafes—Ann Arbor’s got everything most trendy souls desire. Beware Trump and Cruz supporters: This is one of the most liberal cities in the country.
But don’t assume that the town’s vibrant culture is all based on a transient student population. A high percentage of residents are between 25 and 34.
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7. Cincinnati, OH
Dozens of murals and a perpetual love of beer
Cincinnati Artworks
Median home price: $138,000.
Massive street-painting parties, evening glow-art-decorating bashes followed by epic group bicycle rides—this is Cincinnati? Yep, the third-largest city in Ohio now wholeheartedly embraces its groovy side. Under a recent initiative, young artists and apprentices under a local nonprofit have completed more than 100 murals in downtown inspired by the city’s history and businesses. And lots of them are awesome.
The historical neighborhood called Over-the-Rhine has been revitalized, too, giving rise to intriguing dining and shopping destinations, as well as art galleries and celebrity-owned bars. Farther afield, one of the city’s most popular clubs is a 1814 Victorian mansion that hosts everything from bluegrass to death metal bands.
The city’s German heritage is still evident in its perpetual love of beer. You can find breweries that turn out coffee- and cacao-infused stout, sour ales, and beers aged in bourbon barrels.
And there’s more to the food scene than the city’s famed five-way chili. Findlay Market dates to 1852, but these days you can find Belgian-style waffles, curry-infused small-batch pickles, and “Mexican lasagna.”
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8. St. Louis, MO
The best Mardi Gras is right in town.
Chris Draper/Flickr
Median home price: $145,000.
Between Blueberry Hill (a restaurant/music venue), where the legendary Chuck Berry walked the stage more than 200 times, and the Bluesweek Festival every spring, St. Louisans are spoiled with awesome tunage. Don’t even tell them if you’re going to New Orleans for Mardi Gras—everyone here knows the best Mardi Gras is right in town.
And when it comes to food, nobody puts St. Louis in the corner. With dozens of food trucks rolling into town, you can find not only St. Louis style barbecue (duh), but also Korean-style tacos, black bean burgers, and Filipino blue crab ceviche on the street.
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9. New Orleans, LA
The world-famous French Quarter
Peeter Viisimaa/iStock
Median home price: $245,000.
More than a decade after Katrina devastated New Orleans, it has rebounded to attract a new generation with its beauty, laid-back lifestyle, and unique charm. Of course, its social scene is best known for a certain debauched festival in February; however, in a city that’s filled with artists, musicians, and fortune tellers, there is always a lot going on. And music is woven into the fabric of virtually all aspects of NOLA’s culture.
Some of the neighborhoods that were the most damaged after Katrina, such as Mid-City and The Bywater, have emerged as new hot spots. Recent years have seen the opening of a major new green space and bike path, and a 30,000-square-foot farmers market is in the works. And while the local cuisine is justifiably legendary, these days restaurants serving gumbo and jambalaya sit alongside crudo bars, upscale Vietnamese eateries, and a place specializing in European canned seafood.
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10. Charleston, SC
Award-winning chefs and global cuisines
Seagull_l/iStock
Median home price: $325,200.
Charleston may hold tight to its centuries-old history, but it’s shaken off its stodginess with a wave of energy in its art and music scene. This year, a brand-new music festival, Dirty South by Southeast, debuts in town. Smaller in scale than Austin’s South by Southwest festival, Dirty South will “show off the grungier side of Charleston’s music scene with metal, rockabilly and alt-rock bands at local dive bars,” reports Charleston Scene.
More evidence of the new Charleston is found on local plates. With the rise of the farm-to-table movement, award-winning local chefs are using regionally sourced ingredients to reinterpret Carolina as well as global cuisines, yielding pit-cooked heritage pork, noodle bowls with pork confit and kimchi, and cauliflower pita with Israeli relish. You thought this place was just all about southern-fried steak and collard greens? Think again.
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