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This is officially the happiest place to live in the UK

Photo credit: Getty Images
Photo credit: Getty Images

From Red Online

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.

Photo credit: Getty Images
Photo credit: Getty Images

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.

Photo credit: prestongeorge - Getty Images
Photo credit: prestongeorge - Getty Images

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

  1. St Ives, South West

  2. Skipton, Yorkshire & The Humber

  3. Leamington Spa, West Midlands

  4. Llandrindod Wells, Wales

  5. Perth, Scotland

  6. Kendal, North West

  7. Stratford-upon-Avon, West Midlands

  8. Dorchester, South West

  9. Harrogate, Yorkshire & The Humber

  10. Richmond-upon-Thames, London

  11. Falmouth, South West

  12. Hexham, North East (last year's winner)

  13. Weymouth, South West

  14. Shrewsbury, West Midlands

  15. Tonbridge, South East

  16. Plymouth, South West

  17. Poole, South West

  18. Northwich, North West

  19. Barnstaple, South West

  20. Guildford, South East

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