10 Most Affordable US College Towns for New Grads

Now that you’ve got that college degree that gives you a key into “the company of educated men and women”–that’s what we were told at least–where are you planning to use that key? More and more, new college grads are staying put in the town they’ve come to know over the preceding four (or more) years.

College towns have a lot to offer. Good food, lively nightlife, and in many cases affordable housing. Another relatively recent development is that good, high-paying jobs are migrating to some of these towns as major U.S. companies discover that there’s a lot of talent between the coasts. Who knew?

Researchers at Realtor.com looked at the 700 largest real-estate markets in the county and made a first cut based on the town having at least one four-year university with at least 10,000 students. The towns were then ranked on a variety of factors including percentage of college students, unemployment rates, home appreciation, and median income.

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Large cities did not make the list because even though, say Boston, has a lot of colleges and a lot of college students, as a percentage of the total population the number of students just isn’t big enough as a proportion of the total population. In the following list the top 10 college towns are ranked on the number of students, the median listing price of a home, and the median household income. For more discussion and details, see the Realtor.com website. https://www.realtor.com/news/trends/college-towns-recent-grads-stick-around/

1. Ames, Iowa
   Number of college students: 34,935
   Median home list price: $265,200
   Median household income: $56,800
2. State College, Pennsylvania
   Number of college students: 487,480
   Median home list price: $257,600
   Median household income: $61,100
3. Lawrence, Kansas
   Number of college students: 28,883
   Median home list price: $289,000
   Median household income: $58,600
4. Blacksburg, Virginia
   Number of college students: 46,722
   Median home list price: $231,400
   Median household income: $52,900
5. Ithaca, New York
   Number of college students: 31,547
   Median home list price: $250,700
   Median household income: $61,700
6. Ann Arbor, Michigan
   Number of college students: 75,929
   Median home list price: $334,100
   Median household income: $69,200
7. Champaign, Illinois
   Number of college students: 51,442
   Median home list price: $158,100
   Median household income: $55,500
8. Lafayette, Indiana
   Number of college students: 39,768
   Median home list price: $191,600
   Median household income: $54,000
9. Columbia, Missouri
   Number of college students: 39,099
   Median home list price: $240,400
   Median household income: $53,500
10. Iowa City, Iowa
    Number of college students: 29,192
    Median home list price: $290,000
    Median household income: $61,400

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