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48. St. John, IN
St. John
WINNER
Top 100 rank: 48
Population: 12,300
Compare St. John to Top 10 Best Places
Just 24 miles outside Chicago, St. John still contains working farms, horse stables, and undeveloped lots.

Residents praise the country feeling of this quiet, well-planned community, and more and more city dwellers are packing up and moving in.

While St. John is child-oriented, with a strong emphasis on Little League and the Lake Central High School band, adults have access to endless entertainment options in the Windy City. --D.G.

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St. John stats
Median family income
(per year)		 $89,979 $97,441
Job growth %
(2000-2008)*		 36.10% 19.58%
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Median home price $270,813 $262,148
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Test scores reading
(% above/below state average)		 29.7% 25.6%
Test scores math
(% above/below average)		 23.5% 28.2%
Personal crime incidents (per 1,000) 0 1
Property crime incidents (per 1,000) 12 19
Restaurants
(within 15 miles)		 1,631 1,923
High temp in July ° F* 83.9° 85.5°
Low temp in Jan ° F* 14.3° 21.0°
Median age 39.2 36.6
Median family income
(per year)		 $89,979 $97,441
Family purchasing power
(annual, cost-of-living adjusted)		 $92,954 $95,041
State sales tax 7.00% 5.63%
State income tax rate
(highest bracket)		 3.40%I 6.06%
State income tax rate
(lowest bracket)		 3.40%I 3.07%
Auto insurance premiums
(Average price quotes, for the state)		 $1,478 $1,744
Job growth %
(2000-2008)*		 36.10% 19.58%
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Median home price $270,813 $262,148
Average property taxes N.A. $3,853
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Colleges, universities and
professional schools (within 30 miles)		 26 20
Test scores reading
(% above/below state average)		 29.7% 25.6%
Test scores math
(% above/below average)		 23.5% 28.2%
% students attending public/private
schools (located within town limits)		 94.5/5.5 90.1/9.9
Air quality index*
(% of days AQI ranked as good)		 68.0% 78.6%
Personal crime incidents (per 1,000) 0 1
Property crime incidents (per 1,000) 12 19
Median commute time (in minutes) 29.3 22.5
% population with commute
45 mins. or longer		 24.6% 13.8%
% population walk or bike to work 1.1% 2.3%
Movie theaters
(within 15 miles)		 17 24
Restaurants
(within 15 miles)		 1,631 1,923
Bars
(within 15 miles)		 259 174
Public golf courses
(within 30 miles)		 130 148
Libraries
(within 15 miles)		 57 53
Museums (accredited by AAM;
within 30 miles)		 9 7
Ski resorts (within 100 miles) 5 17
Arts funding (Dollars per person of state funds spent on arts) 0.6 1.2
Annual rainfall
(inches)		 38.31 39.77
% clear days in the area 23 27
High temp in July ° F* 83.9° 85.5°
Low temp in Jan ° F* 14.3° 21.0°
Median age 39.2 36.6
Completed at least some college
(% of residents)		 56.6% 71.9%
Married % 68.1% 62.9%
Divorced % 3.7% 7.7%
Racial diversity index
(100 is national average; higher numbers indicate greater diversity)		 65.2 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.
$2,500 exemption is for each dependent child. If the dependent is not the taxpayer's child the exemption is $1,000.
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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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