Even when your job can be done from anywhere, the place you call home still matters—a lot.

By the old rules of work, your dream career determines where you live. If you want to make movies, move to Los Angeles. If you want to work in publishing, you must be in New York. And if you're launching a start-up, you'll only succeed in Silicon Valley.

But with the meteoric rise of remote and freelance work, more people than