In January, I reported that Acton is one of the best suburbs in Massachusetts to live in, according to Niche, a ranking and review site. Based on the latest update of information available from dozens of public data sources, including the U.S. Census, Department of Education, and FBI, Niche still gives our community an overall grade of A+ and still ranks Acton #15 in its list of Best Suburbs in the state to live in, based on a variety of factors, as their chart below shows.
Acton scored an A+ for Public Schools and Good for Families; A for Outdoor Activities and Health & Fitness; A- for Diversity; B+ for Jobs and Crime & Safety; B for Housing, Nightlife, and Commute; as well as C+ for Cost of Living and Weather. Niche explains their data sources and ranking method on their website.
Niche’s team, which is headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA, but has employees throughout the U.S., says, “Acton is a suburb of Boston with a population of 23,961. Acton is in Middlesex County and is one of the best places to live in Massachusetts. Living in Acton offers residents a dense suburban feel and most residents own their homes. In Acton there are a lot of coffee shops and parks. Many families live in Acton and residents tend to be liberal. The public schools in Acton are highly rated.”
Dean Charter, chair of the Acton Select Board, said, “Acton is indeed a great place to live. The residents have consistently shown support for open space preservation, our libraries, and an excellent Police/Fire/EMS operation. We have great support services and an excellent Human Services building for seniors and others who need assistance.”
He added, “We have provided over a half million dollars a year in property tax relief to ease the burden on lower income folks. Our support for the McManus Manor AHA project shows that we want to leave no one behind. Finally, our residents have always backed improvements such as sidewalks and traffic infrastructure to provide walkable opportunities.”
Tori Campbell, chair of the Acton-Boxborough Regional School Committee, said, “Niche’s rating reflects what we see when we compare our district to a wide range of peer communities: strong growth, excellent outcomes, and a deep community commitment to education.”
She added, “Maintaining that strength and ensuring every student has opportunities to succeed will require careful choices in the face of ongoing fiscal pressures. As AB Forward makes clear, our challenge is to balance limited resources with the educational quality and opportunities our community values.”
Digging deeper into Niche’s data, Acton also ranks:
- #9 (A+) for Suburbs with the Best Public Schools in Massachusetts based on state test scores, graduation rates, SAT/ACT scores, teacher quality, and student and parent reviews. This is up from #13 in January,
- #13 (A+) for Best Suburbs to Raise a Family in Massachusetts based on public schools, crime rates, cost of living, and family-friendly amenities. This is up from #15 in January.
- #34 (A-) for Most Diverse Suburbs in Massachusetts based on ethnic and economic diversity statistics by city from the U.S. Census. This is down from #29 in January.
- #40 (B) for Best Suburbs to Buy a House in Massachusetts based on home values, property taxes, home ownership rates, housing costs, and real estate trends. This is unchanged from January.
- #61 (B) for Best Suburbs for Young Professionals in Massachusetts based on the number of millennial residents, job opportunities, and access to bars, restaurants, and affordable housing. This is down from #51 in January.
Niche includes other interesting data about Acton. For example, 76% of the real estate in town is owned and 24% rented. In January, 74% of the real estate in town was owned and 26% rented. The median home value in Acton is $757,500. In January, the median home value in Acton was $696,500. And the median rent in town is $1,911. In January, the median rent in town was $1,781.
Niche also includes data about Acton’s demographics. It’s worth noting that 46% of those living in our community have a master’s degree or higher, which is 3.3 times the national average of 14%. Another 32% of Acton’s residents have a bachelor’s degree.
Only 12% of Acton’s population is 18-34. In another story about Acton’s changing population, which was also published in January, I said, “The missing block in the community’s ‘population pyramid’ is the group of people who are 20 to 34 years old.”
Niche also includes 83 reviews of our town.
Most of the reviews are favorable. Comments from current residents included, “Acton is a great place for families with children. There are 6 elementary schools to choose from and a good middle school and high school. There are lots of small businesses around town to shop at and it is near many other great towns” and “It’s a great town, with a lot of things to do and places to eat. The people are friendly, and the town is clean,” and “Acton is a very welcoming and beautiful place to live. The schools offer fabulous music, theater, and visual arts opportunities, and classes not available in most other districts. The staff cares about social engagement and overall wellness. Acton has an arboretum, countless conservation lands.”
But not all views were so rosy. Comments from current residents also included: “Enjoyable if you are wealthy, which applies to many people in the town. Those who aren’t face a fair share of classism,” and “Overall for being a single parent … it was tough for the first couple of years living here. Hard to make friends and it was also hard for my child to make friends,” and “Acton is a place very focused on competition. There is extreme competition in academics, sports, social life, everything really.”
There are other organizations that rate the best places to live and other criteria that can be used to rate Acton. But over 50 million people have used Niche in the past year because their website has comprehensive data on U.S. schools and neighborhoods and cites reputable sources. So, it’s good to know that Acton is still one of the best suburbs in Massachusetts.
Greg Jarboe is the Acton Exchange beat reporter for the Council on Aging, and also writes on a variety of other topics of community interest.
