D.C. Area Makes All the Best Lists

Brace yourself for more cars moving vans on Washington-area roads: Two national magazines have us on their "Best of" lists.

In the July issue, Kiplinger's Personal Finance (which happens to be based in the District) ranks the Washington metro area third on its list of Best Cities 2009. Number one is Huntsville, Ala., followed by Albuquerque. "It's all about the percentage of a certain type of job," said Bob Frick, senior editor for Kiplinger's. Professional, creative-class workers such as engineers, artists, architects and educators, are thriving in such cities, he said.

Washington was also highlighted recently in Forbes magazine's list of Best Cities for Jobs, by Joel Kotkin. "The Obama-led stimulus, including the massive Treasury bailout, has transformed the town from merely the political capital into the de facto center of regular capital as well. Watch for D.C. and its environs to move up our list over the next year or two. Already the area boasts one of the few strong apartment markets among the big metropolitan areas in the country, which will only improve as job-seekers flock to the new Rome," Kotkin writes.