By Jordan Levin of The Miami Herald, Nov. 16, 2010: 

...

Residents of Miami-Dade said social activities (especially nightlife), education (at least colleges and universities) and aesthetics were reasons to stay.

For Geane Brito, 40, it's Miami's wealth of beaches and access to the Everglades and other natural riches. Also, the area offers activities for daughter Isadora, 10, and son Magnus, 8, and cultural similarities to Brito's native Brazil that have kept her and husband Daniel Kron happy since leaving New York eight years ago for what Brito dubbed the ``flip-flop republic.''

``There are a lot of public services for kids available to everybody,'' Brito said. ``In New York, you feel like you have to have money to live well. Here, there is a certain freedom. . . . It's more down to earth.''

The survey questioned 43,000 adults over three years, 15,200 of them in 2010, with 1,000 of this year's interviews in Greater Miami.

People were asked questions designed to show how attached they were to their cities, such as how satisfied they were with where they lived, and how they rated their town on 10 qualities.

Topping that list were social offerings, openness, aesthetics and education, while economy, safety, social capital and civic involvement were at the bottom. 

More at MiamiHerald.com: 
http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/11/15/1927850/its-not-the-money-we-love-miami.html