Austin is widely recognized as one of the best places to live. Fortune magazine named it one of the ten “Best Big Cities” in 2006. Additionally, MSN.com cited Austin as one of the “Eight Cheap Places You’d Want to Live” in the 2007 report. Combined with Inc. Magazine’s placement of Austin at number 16 on its list of Boomtowns for 2007, it is clear that Austin is an exciting and affordable locale.

Recent studies by the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce show that Austin’s cost-of-living index is 95.3, significantly lower than most other major urban areas of its size. The median household income in Austin in 2006 was $50,484, well above the national average. Austin’s population has nearly doubled in the past decade, and this strong growth shows no sign of stopping. Diversity is the hallmark of Austin’s community, both in age and race.