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5. Sherwood, OR
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Sherwood, OR
5
Top 50 rank: 5
Population: 18,736

There are plenty of reasons to love this small town just outside Portland -- quaint historic downtown, top-ranked schools, relatively affordable home prices -- but residents gush most about its proximity to fun stuff.

Just west of Sherwood is Willamette Valley wine country. Keep going and in less than two hours you're on the Oregon Coast. Or travel 65 miles east to Mount Hood for skiing or hiking. Then there's Portland, home to highly acclaimed restaurants, microbreweries, museums, theater, and more.

It's also an easy commute to the likes of Nike in Beaverton, Intel in Hillsboro, and a plethora of high-tech and medical jobs. Oregon was hit hard by the recession, but the region has made a strong comeback. Says Judy Adler, a local real estate agent: "The recovery has been incredible." --Sarah Max

Watch: Play in a $3 million Sherwood home

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Sherwood, OR
Town stats
Median family income (per year)
$93,716
Job growth % (2010-2012)
3.51%
Median home price (2012)
$243,538
Reading test scores (% above/below average)
26.2%
Math test scores (% above/below average)
15.3%
Personal crime incidents (per 1,000)
0
Property crime incidents (per 1,000)
10
Financials
Town stats
Median family income (per year)
$93,716
Family purchasing power (annual, cost-of-living adjusted)
$85,422
Sales tax
0.00%
State income tax rate (highest bracket)
9.90%I
State income tax rate (lowest bracket)
5.00%I
Auto insurance premiums (Average price quotes, for the state)
$1,419
Job growth % (2010-2012)
3.51%
Housing
Median home price (2012)
$243,538
Average property taxes
(2012)
$3,917
Education
Reading test scores (% above/below state average)
26.2%
Test scores math (% above/below average)
15.3%
% students attending public/private schools (located within town limits)
97.3/2.7
Quality of life
Air quality index* (% of days AQI ranked as good)
94.9%
Personal crime incidents (per 1,000)
0
Property crime incidents (per 1,000)
10
Median commute time (in minutes)
23.1
% population with commute 45 mins. or longer
16.4%
% population walk or bike to work
4.5%
Leisure and culture
Arts funding (Dollars per person of state funds spent on arts)
0.7
Weather
Annual rainfall (inches)
37.07
% clear days in the area
39%
High temp in July ° F
79.2°
Low temp in Jan ° F
33.8°
Meet the neighbors
Median age
34.3
Completed at least some college (% of residents)
74.6%
Married %
63.5%
Divorced %
7.7%
Racial diversity index (100 is national average; higher numbers indicate greater diversity)
53.7
View moreless See Sherwood homes for sale
From the September 2013 issue

Source: Onboard Informatics. Details


(I) Income tax notes:
17 states have statutory provision for automatically adjusting to the rate of inflation the dollar values of the income tax brackets, standard deductions, and/or personal exemptions. Massachusetts, Michigan, and Nebraska index the personal exemption only. Oregon does not index the income brackets for $125,000 and over.
For joint returns, taxes are twice the tax on half the couple's income.
The personal exemption takes the form of a tax credit instead of a deduction.
The deduction for federal income tax is limited to $5,000 for individuals and $10,000 for joint returns in Missouri and Montana, and to $6,100 for all filers in Oregon.
Is Sherwood a great town, or what?
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Fan Favorite Towns

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. Sharon, MA 11,968
2. Apex, NC 10,738
3. Westford, MA 6,023
4. Peachtree City, GA 5,632
5. Hillsborough, NJ 5,329
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How we pick the Best Places
Using statistics from data services company Onboard Informatics and other sources, 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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