Money's list of America's best small towns


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19. Hopkinton, MA
Hopkinton
WINNER
Top 100 rank: 19
Population: 14,000
Compare Hopkinton to Top 10 Best Places
This town 25 miles from Boston gets the spotlight once a year as the starting point of the Boston Marathon. During the other 364 days, Hopkinton is a relatively quiet place.

Green space is abundant, with an 84-acre forest in town, plus seven local parks. But there's industry too: tech corporation EMC has its headquarters here.

The town is currently planning to rejuvenate its aging downtown. For now, residents can enjoy a newly built gazebo. --R.G.

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Hopkinton stats
Median family income
(per year)		 $132,493 $97,441
Job growth %
(2000-2008)*		 6.24% 19.58%
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Median home price $484,000 $262,148
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Test scores reading
(% above/below state average)		 47.8% 25.6%
Test scores math
(% above/below average)		 46.0% 28.2%
Personal crime incidents (per 1,000) 23 1
Property crime incidents (per 1,000) 83 19
Restaurants
(within 15 miles)		 1,974 1,923
High temp in July ° F* 82.8° 85.5°
Low temp in Jan ° F* 16.6° 21.0°
Median age 37.0 36.6
Median family income
(per year)		 $132,493 $97,441
Family purchasing power
(annual, cost-of-living adjusted)		 $123,249 $95,041
State sales tax 5.00% 5.63%
State income tax rate
(highest bracket)		 5.30%I 6.06%
State income tax rate
(lowest bracket)		 5.30%I 3.07%
Auto insurance premiums
(Average price quotes, for the state)		 N.A. $1,744
Job growth %
(2000-2008)*		 6.24% 19.58%
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Median home price $484,000 $262,148
Average property taxes
(2007)		 $5,179 $3,853
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Colleges, universities and
professional schools (within 30 miles)		 60 20
Test scores reading
(% above/below state average)		 47.8% 25.6%
Test scores math
(% above/below average)		 46.0% 28.2%
% students attending public/private
schools (located within town limits)		 100.0/0.0 90.1/9.9
Air quality index*
(% of days AQI ranked as good)		 93.0% 78.6%
Personal crime incidents (per 1,000) 23 1
Property crime incidents (per 1,000) 83 19
Median commute time (in minutes) 30.0 22.5
% population with commute
45 mins. or longer		 31.8% 13.8%
% population walk or bike to work 1.9% 2.3%
Movie theaters
(within 15 miles)		 33 24
Restaurants
(within 15 miles)		 1,974 1,923
Bars
(within 15 miles)		 96 174
Public golf courses
(within 30 miles)		 293 148
Libraries
(within 15 miles)		 76 53
Museums (accredited by AAM;
within 30 miles)		 28 7
Ski resorts (within 100 miles) 34 17
Arts funding (Dollars per person of state funds spent on arts) 2.0 1.2
Annual rainfall
(inches)		 45.79 39.77
% clear days in the area 25 27
High temp in July ° F* 82.8° 85.5°
Low temp in Jan ° F* 16.6° 21.0°
Median age 37.0 36.6
Completed at least some college
(% of residents)		 78.8% 71.9%
Married % 70.1% 62.9%
Divorced % 5.8% 7.7%
Racial diversity index
(100 is national average; higher numbers indicate greater diversity)		 25.8 58.9
From the August 2009 issue
Notes:
* County data
(3) Crime incidences are estimates based on FBI 2007 Universal Crime and incidence reports, OnBoard analysis.

(I) Income tax notes:
The 12% rate applies to short-term capital gains, long- and short-term capital gain on collectibles and pre-1996 installment sales classified as capital gain income for Massachusetts purposes. Taxpayers have the choice of paying an optional higher rate of 5.85%.
FORTUNE 500
Liberty Mutual Insurance Group 86
Raytheon 108
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Money picked the top 100. Now it’s your turn: Which town will be our fan favorite? Become a fan of your town and it might just make it to No. 1. Results updated monthly.
Town Become a fan # of fans
1. Louisville, CO Become a fan on facebook Add me! 4,256
2. Chanhassen, MN Become a fan on facebook Add me! 2,410
3. Papillion, NE Become a fan on facebook Add me! 1,581
4. Middleton, WI Become a fan on facebook Add me! 1,481
5. Milton, MA Become a fan on facebook Add me! 1,425
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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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