Money's list of America's best small towns


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52. Rochester, MI
Rochester
WINNER
Top 100 rank: 52
Population: 11,000
Compare Rochester to Top 10 Best Places
This town half an hour from Detroit packs a lot into a small space.

There's natural beauty: Rochester lies at the junction of three waterways and two nature trails, and 82 acres of parkland provide easy access to fishing spots and gardens.

There's history: This area contains several buildings that date back to when Rochester was a 19th-century village powered by mills on the Clinton River.

And there's economic viabiity: Few businesses in town have shut down due to the recession. Despite the auto industry's struggles, Rochester's unemployment rate is significantly better than the county's. --D.G.

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Rochester stats
Median family income
(per year)		 $117,447 $97,441
Job growth %
(2000-2008)*		 9.08% 19.58%
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Median home price $220,000 $262,148
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Test scores reading
(% above/below state average)		 31.7% 25.6%
Test scores math
(% above/below average)		 40.9% 28.2%
Personal crime incidents (per 1,000) 2 1
Property crime incidents (per 1,000) 15 19
Restaurants
(within 15 miles)		 3,001 1,923
High temp in July ° F* 82.7° 85.5°
Low temp in Jan ° F* 15.7° 21.0°
Median age 37.9 36.6
Median family income
(per year)		 $117,447 $97,441
Family purchasing power
(annual, cost-of-living adjusted)		 $121,833 $95,041
State sales tax 6.00% 5.63%
State income tax rate
(highest bracket)		 4.35%I 6.06%
State income tax rate
(lowest bracket)		 4.35%I 3.07%
Auto insurance premiums
(Average price quotes, for the state)		 $1,998 $1,744
Job growth %
(2000-2008)*		 9.08% 19.58%
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Median home price $220,000 $262,148
Average property taxes
(2008)		 $2,648 $3,853
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Colleges, universities and
professional schools (within 30 miles)		 17 20
Test scores reading
(% above/below state average)		 31.7% 25.6%
Test scores math
(% above/below average)		 40.9% 28.2%
% students attending public/private
schools (located within town limits)		 41.4/58.6 90.1/9.9
Air quality index*
(% of days AQI ranked as good)		 82.0% 78.6%
Personal crime incidents (per 1,000) 2 1
Property crime incidents (per 1,000) 15 19
Median commute time (in minutes) 25.1 22.5
% population with commute
45 mins. or longer		 20.7% 13.8%
% population walk or bike to work 2.8% 2.3%
Movie theaters
(within 15 miles)		 31 24
Restaurants
(within 15 miles)		 3,001 1,923
Bars
(within 15 miles)		 203 174
Public golf courses
(within 30 miles)		 251 148
Libraries
(within 15 miles)		 61 53
Museums (accredited by AAM;
within 30 miles)		 4 7
Ski resorts (within 100 miles) 5 17
Arts funding (Dollars per person of state funds spent on arts) 0.8 1.2
Annual rainfall
(inches)		 30.52 39.77
% clear days in the area 21 27
High temp in July ° F* 82.7° 85.5°
Low temp in Jan ° F* 15.7° 21.0°
Median age 37.9 36.6
Completed at least some college
(% of residents)		 81.8% 71.9%
Married % 58.8% 62.9%
Divorced % 9.5% 7.7%
Racial diversity index
(100 is national average; higher numbers indicate greater diversity)		 49.4 58.9
From the August 2009 issue
Notes:
* County data

(I) Income tax notes:
Local rates are excluded; 14 states have county or city level income taxes. In each of these states the average rate for all counties and cities, weighted by total personal income within each jurisdiction, is: 0.19% in Ala.; 0.06% in Ark.; 0.16% in Del.; 1.16% in Ind.; 0.3% in Iowa.; 0.76% in Ky.; 2.98% in Md.; 0.44% in Mich.; 0.12% in Mo.; 0.09% in N.J.; 1.7% in N.Y.; 1.82% in Ohio; 0.36% in Ore.; and 1.25% in Pa.
Deduction or exemption tied to federal tax system. Federal deductions and exemptions are indexed for inflation.
Additional $600 exemption per dependent under 18 years old.
Help your town win!
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How we picked the Best Places
Using statistics from data provider 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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