It's not like Chester County residents needed another study to remind them how wonderful their home county is (there have been plenty), but there's a new one that does just that.
SmartAsset, a financial technology software company, released rankings of the happiest counties in America on Wednesday. Chester County came in fourth.
Here's SmartAsset's assessment of why it is such a happy place:Located in the greater Philadelphia area, Chester County boasts an income ratio of 2.3 and an average life expectancy over 80. It’s the highest-income county in Pennsylvania. No wonder its roughly 500,000 residents are a happy bunch.
Loudon County, Virginia, finished first, followed by Fairfax County, Virginia, and Carver County, Minnesota.
Related: Report: People live longest in Chester County, Burlington County
Three North Jersey counties also made the top 10: Hunterdon (fifth), Morris (sixth) and Somerset (ninth). Another Philly suburb, Montgomery County, also ranked high, coming in 23rd.
SmartAsset says it weighed eight factors in determining the rankings: life expectancy, physical activity, income, cost of living, divorce rates and marriage, unemployment and bankruptcy filings.You can find more on the study's methodology here.