State’s best boroughs offer amenities galore, real estate site says #8212 but which one is the best of the best?

Listen to this article

Real estate website Movoto.com took a look at New Jersey’s municipalities in a quest to uncover the “best small city” in the state. Although it ‘fessed up that its picks are more likely to be boroughs than cities, why split hairs?After all, if, as Movoto suggests, all most people know of New Jersey comes from reality TV, it’s easy to overlook the nicer side of the Garden State. The list aims to turn the spotlight on more deserving topics than Snooki and the Real Housewives.

Movoto looked at a number of factors, including amenities, quality of life, crime, weather and — of course — taxes. It ranked the Top 50 locations, then cut that list down to the Top 10.

Click here to subscribe to the NJBIZ e-newsletters

The winner? Florham Park.

“This spot won mostly because of the overall great quality of life here,” Movoto said in its analysis. “Residents seemed to be better educated than nearly anywhere else in the state, with a high school graduation rate of 97 percent. The median household income was over $105,000 per year, and this little area was home to some of the most expensive homes and houses in the state — which may not sound like a whole lot of fun, but it does indicate a strong housing market. Florham Park was also among the safest places on this list, with just 644 crimes per 100,000 people in 2012.”

The Top 10 Best Small Cities in New Jersey, according to Movoto, along with some of the company’s reasoning:

10. Hasbrouck Heights: “This community is much more than a bedroom community for New York.”

9. Ramsey: “Ramsey residents had one of the best qualities of life out of anywhere we looked at.”

8. Freehold: “Freehold is the home of lots of ‘bests,’ considering out of everywhere we looked at, it had the very most amenities per capita.”

7. Lincoln Park: “What it lacked in restaurants and shops, it more than made up for elsewhere.”

6. Oakland: “Like with anything, you get what you pay for. Here, what you’re paying for is a great quality of life.”

5. Somerville: “What makes Somerville so wonderful? Let us count the ways.”

4. Middlesex: “If you happen to value the safety of your family, nice weather, less time spent driving around and, oh, you know, just the good things in life, this little borough might be the place for you.”

3. Lakewood (census designated place): “The average commute time here was just 22 minutes.”

2. Princeton: “This municipality … is home to much more than one of the best schools in the country; it’s also a hell of a place to live for nonstudents.”

1. Florham Park: “It’s no wonder the Jets chose this place over several other contenders to train; who wouldn’t want to be here?”

To see the full rankings of the Top 50 and their scores on the survey, click here.

ALSO ON NJBIZ:

Appeal expected as judge rules against N.J. in sports betting case

Editorial: Remember mom-and-pops this holiday season

Analyzing your risk is sure bet for Verisk