Money's list of America's best small towns


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26. Ridgewood, NJ
Ridgewood
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WINNER
Top 100 rank: 26
Population: 24,500
Compare Ridgewood to Top 10 Best Places
This Bergen County town has a relatively strong economy and many affluent residents. Lots of them work in Manhattan’s financial sector (it’s a relatively easy commute to the city by rail). Ridgewood’s school district is a big draw: It’s one of the highest ranking in the state. Its downtown features specialty shops and more than 50 restaurants catering to every palate. And it’s dotted with buildings on the National Register of Historic Places. --N.D.
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Is Ridgewood a great town, or what?
Ridgewood stats
  City stats Best places avg.
Median family income
(per year)
$157,935 $99,975
Job growth %
(2000-2010)*
0.17% 24.63%
See jobs near Ridgewood
Median home price $675,000 $265,929
See Ridgewood homes for sale
Test scores reading
(% above/below state average)
42.5% 25.1%
Test scores math
(% above/below average)
36.5% 24.7%
Personal crime incidents (per 1,000) 0 1
Property crime incidents (per 1,000) 8 16
Restaurants
(within 15 miles)
11,716 2,758
High temp in July ° F 85.5° 84.1°
Low temp in Jan ° F 19.5° 20.9°
Median age 39.9 36.35
Financial City stats Best places avg.
Median family income
(per year)
$157,935 $99,975
Family purchasing power
(annual, cost-of-living adjusted)
$131,284 $95,706
State sales tax 7.00% 5.75%
State income tax rate
(highest bracket)
8.97%I 7.37%
State income tax rate
(lowest bracket)
1.40%I 3.13%
Auto insurance premiums
(Average price quotes, for the state)
$2,617 $1,687
Job growth %
(2000-2010)*
0.17% 24.63%
See jobs near Ridgewood
Housing
Median home price $675,000 $265,929
Average property taxes N.A. $4,083
See Ridgewood homes for sale
Education
Colleges, universities and
professional schools (within 30 miles)
124 28
Test scores reading
(% above/below state average)
42.5% 25.1%
Test scores math
(% above/below average)
36.5% 24.7%
% students attending public/private
schools (located within town limits)
98.3/1.7 92.1/7.9
Quality of life
Air quality index*
(% of days AQI ranked as good)
65.0% 78.5%
Personal crime incidents (per 1,000) 0 1
Property crime incidents (per 1,000) 8 16
Median commute time (in minutes) 26.5 23.3
% population with commute
45 mins. or longer
34.3% 15.4%
% population walk or bike to work 2.9% 2.6%
Leisure and culture
Movie theaters
(within 15 miles)
140 30
Restaurants
(within 15 miles)
11,716 2,758
Bars
(within 15 miles)
675 208
Public golf courses
(within 30 miles)
355 165
Libraries
(within 15 miles)
277 74
Museums (accredited by AAM;
within 30 miles)
32 10
Ski resorts (within 100 miles) 43 16
Arts funding (Dollars per person of state funds spent on arts) 2.0 1.2
Weather
Annual rainfall
(inches)
51.5 39.07
% clear days in the area 29 27
High temp in July ° F 85.5° 84.1°
Low temp in Jan ° F 19.5° 20.9°
Median age 39.9 36.35
Completed at least some college
(% of residents)
85.8% 74.5%
Married % 66.2% 61.5%
Divorced % 4.0% 7.6%
Racial diversity index
(100 is national average; higher numbers indicate greater diversity)
77.7 71.0
From the September 2011 issue
Notes: *County data

(I) Income tax notes:
The New Jersey rates reported are for single individuals. For married couples filing jointly, the tax rates also range from 1.4% to 8.97%, with 7 brackets and the same high and low income ranges.
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We asked readers to share their favorite hometown dishes. Now it’s time for you to choose: The most popular dish will be named Fan Favorite!

Hometown dish Town
1. Low Cal Tex Mex Seguin, TX
2. Chile Relleno Seguin, TX
3. Super Bowl Breakfast Jamestown, CA,
4. Texas BBQ Luling, TX
5. Shrimp 'n Grits to die for! Raleigh, NC

Money picked the top 100. Now it's your turn: Which town will be our fan favorite? 'Like' your town and it might just make it to No. 1.

Town # of Likes
1. Saratoga Springs, NY 407
2. Glen Ellyn, IL 202
3. Castle Rock, CO 199
4. Mason, OH 181
5. Oswego, IL 172
Find Your Best Places
Region
Northeast South
Midwest West
Ranking
Top 100 winners only
Population
8.4M
8,500
Home Prices
2010 median sales prices
$2.3M
$42K
Using statistics from data services company Onboard Informatics, we crunched the numbers in order to zero in on America's best small towns for families. (Last year, we looked at small cities, with populations between 50,000 and 300,000.) More

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