Revealed: 100 Best Places to Live in America

Editor’s Note: This was originally published on RISMedia’s blog, Housecall. See what else is cookin’ now at blog.rismedia.com:

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Ever wondered who is living the good life, and where? A new study done by MONEY with the help of realtor.com® runs down the top 100 best places to live in the U.S.

But how does one quantify “best,” a term that feels quite subjective? The study’s methodology focuses on towns with a population of 10,000 to 100,000, to avoid the big cities and spotlight smaller suburbs and towns that often get overlooked as folks gush about Portland, Ore. and Austin, Texas.

The variables MONEY focused on with these smaller places included job availability, school systems, crime rates, convenience, home values and community/cultural outlets. Realtor.com stepped in to assist with the real estate aspect, and together the two sources unveiled 100 great places to live across the country, from North Dakota to New Jersey and back again.

So what are the top 10 spots? Some may surprise you:

1. Fishers, Ind.
2. Allen, Texas
3. Monterey Park, Calif.
4. Franklin, Tenn.
5. Olive Branch, Miss.
6. Dickinson, N.D.
7. Lone Tree, Colo.
8. North Arlington, N.J.
9. Schaumburg, Ill.
10. Bozeman, Mont.

For more details, check out MONEY’s post here, and to see how realtor.com broke down what is occurring in the “Best Places” housing markets, click here.

Zoe Eisenberg is RISMedia’s senior content editor. Email her your real estate news ideas at zoe@rismedia.com.

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