Money's list of America's best small cities
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1. Carmel, IN
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Homes on the west side of town
WINNER
Top 100 rank: 1
Population: 80,100
Compare Carmel to Top 10 Best Places
Five years ago Carmel was a quiet, upscale bedroom community that offered an easy 20-minute commute to downtown Indianapolis. Despite the recession, this formerly sleepy burb has since transformed itself into the ideal place to work and play.
Carmel's business district now has the second-largest concentration of office workers in Indiana and an unemployment rate that's just over half the national average.
The city also has excellent schools, a big sports and recreation center, a performing arts center, and wide bike lanes. All that, plus a variety of housing options ranging from older homes to new subdivisions, and you have an irresistible draw for families.
- Carmel's $5M ultimate party house
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Carmel stats
See all More financial, housing, school, quality of life stats From the September 2012 issue Notes: *County data Due to an error by our data provider, an earlier version listed incorrect stats for this city's number of colleges. (I) Income tax notes: | Home deals | Colleges | More Galleries and more
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