Johnson County suburb among ‘best small cities in America,’ due to income, education

The Kansas City suburb of Leawood has been named among the top 20 best small cities in America, according to the personal finance website WalletHub.

The Johnson County city placed 19th on the list. But it ranked first for having the lowest share of the population living in poverty, 1.4%. By comparison, Isla Vista, California, ranked highest at 64% living in poverty.

Leawood also ranked first for having the highest percentage of its population earning a high school diploma or higher.

WalletHub compared more than 1,300 cities with populations between 25,000 and 100,000 across 43 key indicators of livability, ranging from housing costs and school quality to restaurants per capita.

Placing first on the list is Sammamish, Washington, followed by Carmel, Indiana, and Brentwood, Tennessee.

The website graded each city based on five metrics — affordability, economic health, education, quality of life and safety. Data was pulled from the U.S. Census Bureau and other sources. And scores in each category were averaged to select the overall winner.

Many residents say that Johnson County has become increasingly unattainable, especially for working families and retirees. And the booming housing market has left buyers with a shrinking number of choices.

Last year, new and existing homes sold for an average of $633,534 in Leawood, according to this year’s county appraiser report.