It’s no secret that we’re lucky to live where we do, especially when compared to the rest of the United States. No town is perfect, but as affordable suburbs go, North Arlington is pretty solid. We’re within an hour’s drive of New York City, the shore, the mountains, and quite a few farms/countryside areas. The economy is booming along the coasts, especially up here in the northeast. Being a square mile town, we’ve got everything we need close by from hair salons to multiple pizza places. In many parts of the world, people have to drive five miles to get groceries and it takes long hours on the road before they can even see the coastline. Coupled with low crime rates and affordable homes, North Arlington is a pretty ideal place to live when compared to most small towns in the U.S.

MONEY’s survey conducted with help from realtor.com studied many suburban areas to find the top 10 best places to live in America, and North Arlington took the number eight spot. The article, found at http://time.com/money/4939305/10-best-places-to-live-2017/ states, “We examined dozens of different variables that speak to the good life, including growing jobs, quality schools, cultural and recreational resources, and affordable homes.” But what makes our town stand out? We’ve got a world renowned diner, one of the best rates for housing, and we’ve got a tight knit community made up of people who care about the town. Almost everyone in town comes out to the football games in the fall, we raise money in our schools to help local families in need, and we have programs available that a lot of other towns don’t have access to—like a rowing team. Sometimes it’s hard to see how lucky we are to live in the town that we do, but if you consider the facts, I’d say we should be grateful to have a spot here in North Arlington.