What makes an ideal trick-or-treating neighborhood? Is it an abundance of houses that take decorating too seriously? Or maybe just the presence of full-sized candy bars?
I once thought the answer was borne of years of dutiful practice and not big data. Zillow, of course, purports to have scientifically figured it out.
By identifying where kids can get the most candy, in the least amount of time, in the safest areas, the company has established rankings for major metropolitan areas. For the data-driven trick-or-treater, here's a bit more on that:
"The ranking used four equally weighted data variables: Zillow’s median home value, housing density of single-family homes, crime rates and age of population."
Call me crazy, but by including median home value in an analysis most amount of candy, they're essentially affirming the Bob's Burger trick-or-treating theorem:
That methodology leaves Denver as the seventh-most desirable city for trick-or-treating. Philadelphia, the original home of the Fresh Prince of Bel Air and city of Brotherly Love, came in first place, which I find believable. You can find the other areas that ranked ahead of Denver here.
Anyway, for all those super-cool middle schoolers reading Denverite, there's more. Zillow also assessed which Denver neighborhoods are best suited for trick-or-treating. Here they are:
- Cory-Merrill
- Country Club
- Washington Park
- West Highland
- Congress Park
And here they are again on a map.
But let's not let the story end here brave trick-or-treaters. I still believe in the power of generational knowledge and hard-fought years of candy collection. You tell me -- did they get it right? Are these the best places to trick or treat?
