Best Places to Live 2009

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How about the best places now, like a state that was hit hard but not has the 2 fastest growth job towns in the US and the home prices are still half off. FL offers some great opportunities right nowaccording to the Florida Move Guide.

R STACK of PA 5:08PM December 15, 2011

I like that these are real places, not just nice suburbs like in Money's list.

DR of CA 12:41PM November 10, 2011

We just moved to Auburn, Alabama, and it is truly a wonderful place to live!
The public schools for our children are phenomenal. The support for the arts
is great. So much to do. Yet the town is just the right size....
Go Auburn!!! War Eagle!!!

Kathy of AL 10:58PM November 05, 2011

I lived in Loveland Colorado for decades. While the info about the Rockies and outdoors and artwork is all true, it tells you nothing of the change in culture over the last 10 years. Like so many other Colorado towns, the influx of hispanics has been HUGE, which I wouldn't mind if English were still spoken. Government and many other JOBS require bilingual employees, which seems unfair. Its now hard to get a job if you don't speak Spanish. Greeley is even worse.

Lee of FL 1:04PM September 05, 2011

Upper St. Clair has a indoor/outdoor waterpark.

Mike of PA 12:05AM August 12, 2011

These places are over exaggerated. Nothing happens in small towns. I've been bored for 5 years straight. I WANT TO MOVE BACK TO CALI! !!! !!! I hate it when people give false advise to make you stumble.... Why do they want people out of the big cities so bad.

chelsea of TX 1:46PM May 25, 2011

I attended college in Auburn and plan to return after graduating with my masters. Great campus, great people, and GREAT FOOTBALL. 2010 champs. War Eagle! Someone needs to give the commenter above a nice tall glass of HATORADE......your crimson colors are showing..go poison a tree. Also check the link, for any who wonder how educated the population in Auburn is..backward redneck, have you ever been there?
http://blogs.ajc.com/business-beat/2011/03/28/athens-is-no-23-in-smartest-college-towns-ranking/

Stew of AL 4:35PM April 25, 2011

Auburn, Al., a great place to live??? give me a break. Evidently the researchers never spent any time there. Talk about your bigoted, backward redneck areas.....sheesh!

Parker formely of Auburn of AL 3:03PM March 26, 2011

W e all know about southern charm, and lovely California. I have lived in nc, sc, No + So Cal. offices in fl, Tex, Boston & DC. But theire Is a place with 100 Golf courses in it's Metro Area, Ski slopes, and over 400 lakes to boat swim and fish.
I am speaking Oakland County, Mi. 30 Miles North of Detroit. What you say. Well , their is another side of Detroit, that doesn't make the drive media or smear image of the rust belt. All those engineers, designers, advertising arty types, and researchers and small business folks who love Auotomobiles, and have put the world on wheels, know the little secret is true. The five million of us who continue to live here in the beautiful part of southeast Michigan and would not trade it, even in the worst of times. We are coming back America.
As the saying goes from an old state motto. "If though seekest a beautiful peninsula, look about you."

Doc Hartley of MI 1:17PM February 26, 2011

Nothing rocks like Seattle! Great weather, great skiing, great water sports, biking hiking and the people are all outstanding. It actually rains less than most places in the country. We have Canada close and the Puget Sound has everything you can ask for in a place to live. We don't have any state taxes and my 3,000 sq ft. home is 3,500 property taxes a year; it has all the bells and whistles w/3 car garage and landscaped to the hilt. Homes are very reasonable here now and we have tons of great businesses which pay well. We have bike trails that literally run for miles and miles through several counties. Every pass has a ski resort and it's also wonderful on the east side of the Cascades. Waterfalls, clean and beautiful rivers, lakes, and ocean. You name it, it's here. I have a family of 5 and my total utilities per month is about 195.00. If you like having a Japanese Garden like mine, then this is the place. My neighbors are great friends and it's very diverse. Block parties are held often and neighbors help each other. We don't live in Seattle, but go their often to enjoy the most beautiful city in the world. Our coffee is superb and we have more restaurants per square mile than you can count. Fly to Hawaii on a good deal for 300.00; we just took the whole family and had a wonderful time. Our summers are the best anywhere! The school system here is the best. The college system in WA State is also exceptional. In-state tuition is very reasonable and they have reciprocal agreements with Idaho and Oregon. We have lived here 13 years and we love it. Since the colleges are close by, it gives us a reason to do day-trips. I grew up in Missouri and visit from time-to-time. They have floods, tornadoes, ice storms, locusts, snakes, cockroaches, cold winters, hot steamy summers, bad golf courses (ours our great and scenic), bad salaries, insane crime, and poor school systems. I grew up there and still have plenty of family and friends back home, BUT... I could probably make about 25% as much per year as I make here in this area. The homes there are just as expensive and not as well built or kept up, good contractors are hard to come by in Mo and the cost of food is just as expensive. We don't have bugs here or snakes. I haven't seen a single cockroach since living here and our ants don't bite and stay outside, where they belong. We don't have tornados, and our floods flow to the ocean. We are a fun-loving group of amazing different cultures, nationalities, religions, and races. Discrimination is everywhere, but around here... women are equals and have an equal chance of making a great living. The average household income in my town of about 14,000 is over $87,000. per yr.

Jim of WA 2:13AM February 25, 2011