To those of you who are already residents of St. Cloud, you pretty much already know why you live there. The community enjoys some of the finest weather in the United States; the schools continue to improve every year on their way to becoming among the best in the state, home values are on the rise, close proximity to world class beaches and theme parks and so much more.

Recently,  the fact that St. Cloud is an amazing place to live became more of a national awareness when SmartAsset™ posted an article about the “Top  Ten Cities to Raise a Family in Florida.”

SmartAsset has ranked St. Cloud No. 7 on The Best Places to Raise a Family in Florida list released Aug. 17. The personal-finance technology company’s data-driven study reveals that St. Cloud has some of the best schools in Florida with a high-school graduation rate above 80 percent, which is the highest score on the Top 10 list. The study also reveals that St. Cloud is affordable when it comes to day-care costs; the cost of keeping a toddler in a day-care center amounts to $143 per week, which is the fourteenth-lowest cost in the study.

Upon hearing the news, Deputy Mayor Dave Askew exclaimed, “Great schools, excellent first responders and great services, combined with residents who love being here… That’s why we live, grow and play here!”

“Fantastic news for St. Cloud,” said Interim City Manager Bill Sturgeon. “We are a great place to live, work and play, and it’s great that we are being recognized by SmartAsset!”

According to SmartAsset™, “In order to find the best places to raise a family in Florida, we looked at data on 65 cities across the state. We looked at metrics like family poverty rate, crime rate, child care costs, home value change, graduation rate, average deficit for families in poverty, median household income and median housing costs.”

Congratulations St. Cloud!