Niche.com Ranks Birmingham Among State's Best Suburbs

BIRMINGHAM, MI — How do you define a great place to live? According to Niche.com, which just released the 2017 Best Suburbs to Live in America rankings, there are several factors that a suburb is judged on, including school quality, amount of crime, housing trends, employment stats and access to amenities.

Based on those factors, as well as data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the FBI and the Bureau of Labor Statistics and more, Niche came up with the Top 100 suburbs in America and in Michigan. Birmingham ranked 13th, according to Niche. Ann Arbor, East Grand Rapids, Bloomfield Township, Beverly Hills and Troy rounded out the top five.

“It's a beautifully groomed area with some of the nicest real estate and schools in Michigan,” a Niche.com user wrote. “There is no shortage of good food, shopping, and entertainment including two cinemas. Visitors can stay at the Townsend Hotel, the best hotel in the state outside of those in Detroit. It's located in a convenient, central location.”

Carmel, Indiana landed in the No. 1 spot nationwide. Ann Arbor had the highest national ranking of any Michigan community at No. 7. Here’s a list of how some of Birmingham’s neighbors did in Niche’s rankings for Michigan:

• Birmingham, 13th
• Novi, 14th
• Rochester Hills, 16th
• City of Rochester, 21st
• City of Plymouth, 25th
• Plymouth Township, 26th
• Canton Township, 27th
• Royal Oak, 33rd
• City of Dearborn 88th

Michael Woyton (Patch Staff) contributed to this report. Photo courtesy of the city of Birmingham