Greater Miami is an incredibly diverse place, and Hialeah is a testament to that diversity – not only in the sense of its populous, which is largely Hispanic and Cuban, but also in what it has to offer its residents.

1. Affordable, available and on the rise – Hialeah is one of the area markets where middle-class families can still buy a home that also genuinely qualifies as a smart investment. In October, Trulia put Hialeah’s median home sales price at $234,000 – well below the city’s $314,000 median – and the market has seen steady appreciation since 2012, when home prices were below $100,000. Hialeah is a “very hot” market, according to Zillow.

2. Easy to get around…to all the jobs – Hialeah has a robust public transportation network, which makes maneuvering the city without a car simple. However, if a buyer prefers to drive, they won’t have to spend much on gas, because the area is saturated with essentials, like grocery stores and jobs. There are 201,453 close proximity jobs in the Hialeah area, which is about 150,000 above the national median, according to AARP’s Livability Index.

3. There’s a flamingo flock – A little over 80 years ago, Joseph Widener, a well-known and wealthy art collector, brought a flock of flamingos from Cuba to Miami. He settled the colony in a lake that fills out the center of Hialeah Park, which is known for its horse racing. Today, the colony continues to thrive, and it’s become a major attraction in the city (and a nursery for the species). The flamingos bred in Hialeah have been transported throughout North America, and donated to zoos and parks.

4. It’s a piece of American history – Yes, Hialeah has the only successful breeding flamingo colony in the world outside of the species’ natural habitat; and yes, it has The Great Dame, a historic race track that’s hosted the likes of Harry Truman and Winston Churchill; but the city’s most significant claim to fame is that in 1937, famed aviator Amelia Earhart departed from Hialeah on what would be her fatal attempt to be the first woman to fully circumnavigate the globe at its equator. Her disappearance was a mystery that puzzled the world for generations, and still stands as one of the great American tragedies.