The company said this week that Alpena’s affordability, safety, economy, quality of life, and weather make it the 18th most desirable lake town to call home among 46 communities studied.

Alpena took top honors in the weather subcategory of the study, scoring high marks for flood risk level, number of disasters, and water temperature. It ranked 17th in education and health, with top-ranking scores for quality of beach water and access to healthy foods.

Among the communities studied, Alpena had the highest share of for-sale waterfront homes and the fourth-best housing costs ranking, according to WalletHub.

Traverse City earned a number-one overall rank, outpacing cities around the country with high marks for nightlife establishments, restaurants, coffee shops, spas, and other “quality of life” factors. Alpena ranked 9th in the quality of life category.

News Photo by Julie Riddle A “Sold” sign stands outside a waterfront home on Thunder Bay in Alpena on Friday.

WalletHub ranked Holland 19th and Port Huron 44th out of the 46 towns included in the study, which included all U.S. cities of 10,000 to 150,000 residents with at least one beach listed on TripAdvisor. Coastal cities were ranked separately from communities along inland lakes.

The rankings incorporated 62 metrics, from unemployment and crime rates to outdoor recreation opportunities. The data was drawn from multiple sources, including the U.S. Census Bureau, the National Association of Realtors, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

By the numbers

Alpena rankings, out of 46 lakefront U.S. towns studied by WalletHub.

Overall rank: 18

Affordability: 23

Weather: 1

Safety: 34

Economy: 34

Education and Health: 17

Quality of Life: 9

Source: Wallethub.com 2021 Best Beach Towns to Live In report