Money Magazine Names Top Places to Live in America

The August edition of Money magazine announced Monday that in their annual ranking of American cities, the one determined to be the "best place to live" is Fort Collins, CO. The city is located about 60 miles north of Denver, not far from Rocky Mountain National Park. Editors claim that the factors contributing to the city's standing include its natural setting, the presence of Colorado State University, and the vibrant and entertaining downtown area. The magazine said that Fort Collins beat out other cities also because of its "ease of living" characteristics such as recreation and manageable commute times.

The annual "best places to live" feature has appeared in Money for many years in a row, but last year the magazine spotlighted prime suburban areas across the country. The resulting data being available online proved to be very popular, so editors decided that this year they would focus instead on smaller cities with fewer than 300,000 residents. The cities chosen are not dependent on metropolitan areas for jobs, recreation, or entertainment venues. Although Fort Collins wasn't part of last year's rankings by Money, it did make Outside magazine's list as a "dream town" for Americans to live and work in, partly due to the area's abundant recreational opportunities.

Editors evaluated 745 places across the United States with populations greater than 50,000. Cities were ranked on a number of different factors, including average income, employment markets, cost of living, property taxes, and housing prices. Executive editor Craig Matters further said that data about crime rates, congestion, climate, and public schools were also considered. When all the rankings were tallied up, Fort Collins came out on top. Naperville, IL, was second on the list, followed by Sugar Land, TX, Columbia/Ellicott City, MD, Cary, NC, Overland Park, KN, Scottsdale, AZ, Boise, ID, Fairfield, CN, and Eden Prairie, MN.

The August cover of Money features Kari Olsen and her family walking near Horsetooth Reservoir. Olsen, who grew up in Fort Collins, moved away for a time and then moved back to the area in 1994 with her husband and three children. "We wanted to be here because of the quality of life," said Olsen, 38. "Just look at the recreation - there is so much to do, it's hard to choose what to do." Although the glowing recommendations from Olsen and Money magazine might attract more people or industries to those high-ranking areas, Matters said that isn't necessarily the case. "We are not a leading indicator; we are following," he said. "People already know these are great places to live."