Are These The Best Outdoorsy Places to Live on a Budget?

Staying fit and finding that ever-elusive work/life balance shouldn’t cost an arm and a leg, so one real estate website set out to find the best outdoorsy cities in America that are still affordable for active citizens.

Realtor.com recently released this top five list of active places where the average American can still actually afford to live and be close to natural wonders and outdoor living attractions but without going above the median home price.

As they say in their video, many places around the U.S. with plenty of outdoor activities and fantastic weather have become synonymous with sky-high housing prices, but their “five best hidden spots” are cities where you can “practically live outside — without emptying your 401(k).”

So, according to Realtor.com, the five Best Affordable, Outdoorsy Cities are: “bicycle-friendly” Dayton, Ohio (median home price: $132,500); “year-round outdoor dining and mountain biking” mecca Greensboro, North Carolina (median home price $193,500); hike- and ski-loving Morgantown, West Virginia (median home price $226,500); state park packed Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (median home price $175,000); and the “otherworldly natural beauty” of Greenville, South Carolina (median home price $265,500).

Dayton also made Outside Magazine’s list of the 25 best cities of 2017, cited as “the best rebirth of The American Dream”, and Pittsburgh makes every list of the cities where experience-loving millennials are flocking en masse, including Forbes. Which may already be driving up real estate prices in those areas.

If you’re looking for even more options to get outdoors, AT contributor Julie Sprankles recently put together our own list of the most active cities with real estate that’s still within reach. Check them out here.

• More Travelers Are Choosing Hiking Over Hitting the Club
• This Swedish Fitness Trend Combines Jogging and Picking Up Trash
• The Surprising Health Benefits of a Clean Closet