100 Best Small Towns

One place, (out of many), I recall enjoying was Danville, VA......4 or 5 years since we were there, but they were fixing up the old tobacco warehouse area, turning some old buildings into condos, etc.
 
As a current legal resident of Leesburg, there's no way it's a small town. Basically a DC suburb (used to be rural), and is directly connected to Ashburn and Lansdowne. I can guarantee there are more people/cars on Rt 7 at 8:00 AM in a one mile stretch than whatever their definition of a small town contains. Having said that, it's still a good place to live. DGD starts kindergarten there in two weeks.
 
While Belmont, NC isn't Top 100...

We will be moving there next spring :cool:. It is west of Charlotte, has a lovely small town feel, and 10,000 residents. While we will live in a smaller town, it's 10 minutes to the airport, and 20 - 25 minutes into "uptown" Charlotte, and the eclectic near south side ot the city. Mt brother & SIL live just 7 minutes awy, across the Catabwa River.:dance:
 
These kind of lists are good if you remember that the criteria used to develop the list isn't always the criteria you would use. For instance, I notice a lot of these take outdoor activities like kayaking, mountain climbing, etc. into account, but rarely fishing and hunting. They aren't PC and rarely practiced by the urbanites that write these articles. Other bias can be found too. Not that the lists aren't useful, you just can't assume the reasons used to pick the best would be the same reason you would use.
 
I used to work in Solon OH and lived one town over. It is a nice town, great for a family with small kids. It would not be my choice for my retirement
 
flyfishnevada said:
These kind of lists are good if you remember that the criteria used to develop the list isn't always the criteria you would use. For instance, I notice a lot of these take outdoor activities like kayaking, mountain climbing, etc. into account, but rarely fishing and hunting. They aren't PC and rarely practiced by the urbanites that write these articles. Other bias can be found too. Not that the lists aren't useful, you just can't assume the reasons used to pick the best would be the same reason you would use.
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We are looking around Norfork Arkansas. Bass fishing, fly fishing, deer, turkey, bear.
Also mosquitos, humidity, and no economy.
Hmmmm....
Anybody here from small town Arkansas?
 
No thank you! All the towns have one thing in common...SNOW. :nonono:

Some less, some way more, but any snow is not in my retirement cards.
 
Purron said:
From CNNMoney:

Best Places to Live 2011 - Top 100: 1-25 - from MONEY Magazine

Here are the top 10 -

1. Louisville, CO
2. Milton, MA
3. Solon, OH
4. Leesburg, VA
5. Papillion, NE
6. Hanover, NH
7. Liberty, MO
8. Middleton, WI
9. Mukileto, WA
10. Chanhassen, MN
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We had dinner and walked around Louisville, CO on our trip to CO last year. Was one of those perfect days (weather, vacation, vacation). Had a real nice downtown within walking distance to a lot of the homes. Did not suprise me when I saw it in the top.
 
harley said:
As a current legal resident of Leesburg, there's no way it's a small town. Basically a DC suburb (used to be rural), and is directly connected to Ashburn and Lansdowne. I can guarantee there are more people/cars on Rt 7 at 8:00 AM in a one mile stretch than whatever their definition of a small town contains. Having said that, it's still a good place to live. DGD starts kindergarten there in two weeks.
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Likewise, Papillion is a suburb of Omaha. It looks like they went strictly by the town population, but I would say that most anything in a large metro area does not really qualify as a "small town".
 
RunningBum said:
Likewise, Papillion is a suburb of Omaha. It looks like they went strictly by the town population, but I would say that most anything in a large metro area does not really qualify as a "small town".
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Same for Webster Groves, MO, which is an older suburb of St. Louis and is on the list.
 
slingshot said:
We are looking around Norfork Arkansas. Bass fishing, fly fishing, deer, turkey, bear.
Also mosquitos, humidity, and no economy.
Hmmmm....
Anybody here from small town Arkansas?
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You'll find few, if any, mosquitos in northern Arkansas. But, yes, heat and humidity are bountiful in the summer.

My mom was from Arkansas and she and dad retired near Norfork in Mountain Home. We visited often and enjoyed trout fishing on the White and North Fork rivers and fishing Bull Shoals and Norfork lakes. Lots of Chicagoans living there as well as folks from Iowa, Mich, Wis and, lately, Calif.

Definitely a spot for the outdoorsy crowd. It's about a 1.5 hour drive to either Little Rock or Memphis for urban activities.
 
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Most of these places on the list aren't true small towns. They're in or on the fringes of large urban areas. I think if you're within an hour's drive of the downtown area of a big city, you don't really qualify as living a small town lifestyle. True small towns are 90 minutes or more from a metro area, and have a Super Walmart and not much else. The writers for Money magazine wouldn't consider living in one. Also, their selection criteria is likely different than what an individual considering a small town lifestyle is looking for.
 
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Lisa99 said:
No thank you! All the towns have one thing in common...SNOW. :nonono:

Some less, some way more, but any snow is not in my retirement cards.
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Mukilteo is near Seattle. It does snow sometimes, but not every year and (except the amazing winter of 2008) the snow usually stays for less than a week. I will say though that when there is snow on the roads around here, it messes up traffic and transportation like you wouldn't believe.
 
My town is on there.........:)
 
Very very hard to move into a true small town that's not a suburb (you'll be considered a newcomer for the rest of your life). The three Illinois "towns" on the top 100 list are all suburbs that run right into other suburbs but do have cute downtowns and fall within the income qualifications (less than 200% of the state average per the article).
 
Liberty, MO is a suburb of Kansas City. It is an old town that has retained it's town square, but in recent years has grown by leaps and bounds with lots of housing and shopping additions. Nice enough place to live, but not really a small town atmosphere.
 
Bestwifeever said:
Very very hard to move into a true small town that's not a suburb (you'll be considered a newcomer for the rest of your life). The three Illinois "towns" on the top 100 list are all suburbs that run right into other suburbs but do have cute downtowns and fall within the income qualifications (less than 200% of the state average per the article).
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Come to the extreme southern end of Illinois, and I can show you at least a couple dozen of "true small towns". 6 hours from Chicago and 2 hours from St. Louis, and nothing close to being suburban. But the good thing is, you don't need a 7 figure portfolio to ER in them.
 
BLS53 said:
Come to the extreme southern end of Illinois, and I can show you at least a couple dozen of "true small towns". 6 hours from Chicago and 2 hours from St. Louis, and nothing close to being suburban. But the good thing is, you don't need a 7 figure portfolio to ER in them.
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Just curious, please name a few.

Thanks,
Golfnut
 
BLS53 said:
Come to the extreme southern end of Illinois, and I can show you at least a couple dozen of "true small towns". 6 hours from Chicago and 2 hours from St. Louis, and nothing close to being suburban. But the good thing is, you don't need a 7 figure portfolio to ER in them.
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DH's hometown is a true small town and most definitely a 7 figure portfolio is not a requirement to retire there! In that economically healthy town the most expensive house on the market right now is $280K for 4 beds, 4 baths; more than half of the available homes are <$140K.

It would be fun to see a list of true small towns ranked for quality of life.
 
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FinanceDude said:
How about Washington, MO, wine country?
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Washington, MO is a very clean town of about 13k resting on the MO river. About 45 min. from STL. Very safe town with all the basic necessities. like Finance said, if you like wine, the wineries abound in the countryside!
 
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