You know how these personal finance posts we’re always publishing tell you to find a place where you can actually afford to live? But how people respond that it’s not that easy to find affordable, decent towns? Well, here you go: 50 not-too-shabby places around the country, presented in a clicky slide show and illustrated with satellite images for that Google Maps/Homeland Security look that feels so now.
The list was created by ranking candidates according to the following five criteria:
- test scores
- cost of living
- recreational and cultural activities
- number of schools
- crime rate
It’s too early in the morning to transcribe all fifty towns, so we’ll cut to the chase. Here are the top five places to live out the American Dream, or what’s left of it.
“Great Places to Raise Kids–for Less” [BusinessWeek]
(Image: BusinessWeek)
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@junkmail: “Sorry guys, I gotta take issue with such ignorant statements.”
Have you not yet discovered that when midwesterners make ignorant statements about other places, it’s because they’re uneducated, backwards hicks, but when coastal people make ignorant, sometimes offensive, sometimes downright bigoted statements about places they’ve often never actually even been and clearly know nothing about, that’s a sign that they’re CULTURALLY SOPHISTICATED?
I love this conceit that living 20 minutes outside downtown Chicago means there’s “nothing to do.” Only if you’re too fucking lazy to get off the couch, folks.
There is no city in the Birmingham metropolitan area where I think to myself, “Oh, I would love to raise a family here” Helena, AL being no exception. Also, how could this be on the top 50 great places to raise a family when it is 20 miles from one of the top 10 most dangerous cities in America?
I’ve lived in several towns in Nebraska, from 500, to 25,000 to 250,000, and I find great things about each. Many of the small towns on this list are small enough to be pleasant, safe and humble communities but are close enough to larger cities that they can take advantage of their amenities. For example, Waverly, NE (#6) is a ten minute drive from Lincoln and 30 minutes from Omaha. Most of the people who live in Waverly commute to Lincoln and can still raise their children in a small town.
Remember, this isn’t a list of the best places to live, it’s the most desirable locations to raise a family.
@Eyebrows McGee:
I was thinking more of Nebraska, not Illinois, which I know is a busy, commerce-worthy state. Sorry.
I grew up in rural Nebraska, have lived in both small towns and larger cities and I’d much rather raise a family in a small town. Granted, there isn’t as much culture, shopping, diversity and employment opportunity as there is in cities, but many of the towns in this list are a short drive from areas that do offer those luxuries. I live near #6 Waverly, where most of the people who live there work in either Lincoln or Omaha. Living close to a metropolitan area grants you both the career and cultural opportunities of the city, with the safety and security of a small town.
Driving through a community and passing judgement based on what you see is a simplistic way to view things. People in the Midwest aren’t as simple and close-minded as many of you seem to believe, and looking down your nose at us is simply insulting.
Sorry for the “double” post.