Richmond has placed fifth on a list of 85 Canadian cities when it comes to life satisfaction.
That’s according to a survey by Point2Homes, an international real estate search portal, which ranked Canada’s 85 largest cities by nine factors it considers important to millennials, such as housing, income, climate and unemployment rate.
The city also placed in the top ten when it comes to good climate and low unemployment rate, placing seventh and ninth, respectively – but ranked 70th in terms of home price.
Overall, however, Richmond ranked 25th on Point2's list of “hot spot” cities for millennials in 2021. In comparison, the city placed 37th in Point2’s 2018 survey.
“The most desirable places for young professionals represent the perfect mix between affordable housing; lifestyle options that promote great life satisfaction; low crime rates; and — last but not least — great weather and like-minded people,” reads the survey.
“And while the top 10 cities offer the perfect balance between all of these factors, certain cities perform better than the most attractive hubs in certain categories.”
Quebec City placed first in both 2018 and 2021.
In the Lower Mainland, New Westminster ranked sixth on the list of millennial hotspots in 2021, while Burnaby ranked 11th and Vancouver, 13th. Meanwhile, North Vancouver placed 22nd.
Meanwhile, other cities in the region trailed behind. Coquitlam placed 48th, Surrey 71st while Maple Ridge and Langley placed 84th and 85th, respectively.
The survey notes that while affordable housing, reliable incomes and good healthcare are considered “mainstays,” factors such as life satisfaction and climate could also become more important for those millennials — the oldest of whom are turning 40 this year — who are “looking for the ideal place to call home.”
The survey also examined factors such as healthcare, life satisfaction, crime rate, level of education (percentage of the population with a bachelor's degree or higher), and the percentage of millennials in the total population.
Richmond ranked 40th for income, 47th for healthcare and 54th for crime rate.
