This is officially the happiest place to live in the UK
There are lots of things to take into consideration when deciding where to live: what are the schools like? Are the people friendly? Is there beautiful scenery or things to do nearby?
But perhaps the underlying — yet most important — criteria of all is: where will we be happiest?
Staycation and surfing hotspot St Ives in Cornwall has been crowned the happiest place to live in Great Britain.
Residents were found to be happier than any other community with their local area’s nature and green spaces, as well rating their neighbours as the friendliest in the country.
The town topped the list of places where residents are most content by Rightmove, which looked into how people feel about their local areas.
The research also took into account house prices, which calculated the average home in St Ives to be worth £413,414, with demand for property in the area doubling compared to this time last year.
And the Cornish fishing community and haven for artists wasn't the only coastal hotspot high up on the rankings: Poole and Weymouth in Dorset as well as Falmouth and Plymouth in the South West also made the top 20.
Overall, Rightmove found people in coastal and rural areas were happier with their surroundings and general way of life — with lockdown giving people a renewed sense of appreciation and gratitude for the nature on their doorsteps.
But it wasn't all southern coast towns, with Skipton in North Yorkshire taking second place in the Rightmove list and Leamington Spa in Warwickshire coming third.
Tim Bannister, Rightmove director of property data, said: 'This year’s study shows a greater appreciation for green spaces and nature, and a strong correlation between people living in coastal and rural areas and how happy people are where they live.
'Since lockdown we’ve since a trend towards more people looking to live in smaller communities, and so it’s very fitting to see that the picturesque town of St Ives has taken the top spot in 2020.'
Planning a move next year? Take a look at the places which made the top 20...
10 HAPPIEST PLACES TO LIVE IN THE UK
St Ives, South West
Skipton, Yorkshire & The Humber
Leamington Spa, West Midlands
Llandrindod Wells, Wales
Perth, Scotland
Kendal, North West
Stratford-upon-Avon, West Midlands
Dorchester, South West
Harrogate, Yorkshire & The Humber
Richmond-upon-Thames, London
Falmouth, South West
Hexham, North East (last year's winner)
Weymouth, South West
Shrewsbury, West Midlands
Tonbridge, South East
Plymouth, South West
Poole, South West
Northwich, North West
Barnstaple, South West
Guildford, South East
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