TROON has been named the happiest place to live in Scotland due to friendly neighbours, good community spirit, opportunities to develop skills in the area and a strong feeling of safety.

The town was placed second overall in Great Britain, only pipped to the post by another sea-side town, Leigh-On-Sea in Essex. Ayr was the second happiest place to live in Scotland, followed by Edinburgh in third. 

Rightmove’s annual Happy at Home Index asks residents to rate where they live based on 12 happiness factors, across 206 areas in Great Britain. 
Troon has been voted the happiest place to live in Scotland, after almost 24,000 people across Great Britain were asked to rank how happy they feel in their local area. 

The results show that living by the sea seems to do wonders for happiness. 
The study asks residents to rank twelve factors about their local area, with Troon scoring high for locals feeling safe and feeling that they can be themselves. 

It also ranked well for plenty to do, helped by the beautiful beaches and famous golf course that recently hosted The Open. 

The current average asking price of a property in Troon is £200,715.
The twelve factors in the study range from how friendly the neighbours are and how much people feel that they can be themselves, to how good the local services are.

The popular seaside resort of Ayr was crowned the second happiest place to live in Scotland. 

It scored highly for being a place where people earn enough to live comfortably, as well as having good access to nature and green spaces.
Awarded the third happiest place to live in Scotland, is the capital, Edinburgh. Edinburgh scored highest in Scotland for good access to art and cultural activities, no doubt helped by the famous Fringe festival.

Rightmove’s Research Manager Abiola Oni said: “Well it seems the saying that we do like to ‘be beside the seaside’ is true! 

“Obviously what ‘happy’ means to different people can vary greatly, but when you compare the factors that score highest in the happiest areas, it shows just how important having friendly people in the local community area is alongside the services and amenities, which is something buyers often tell us when they are looking in new areas to live. 

“Space is also one of the most important things when people are looking for a new home, so it’s not surprising that places with beautiful beaches like Troon have featured so highly.”

Colin McCrossin, Partner at Corum Estate Agents in Troon says: “Being a coastal town gives residents a wonderful feeling of relaxation and great sense of freedom with long beach walks and open countryside in close proximity. 

“This is especially true if they work in the city and are able to come home to this beautiful area, which is why we get a lot of people moving from Glasgow out to Troon as it’s only a 30 minute commute. 

“There’s a real cross section of age ranges living in the area. 

“The bars and restaurants make it a really vibrant place to live. 

“There is loads for locals to do, from playing golf at Royal Troon to kite-surfing.”