
9) Black Mountain
Black Mountain is a great place to live if you want a calm, peaceful, and artistic life. The city has a small population of eight thousand people, but this small population contains more artists, designers and media people than 90 percent of the cities in the U.S. Like any place meant for artists, the city has drawn people from all sorts of cultural, religious, and racial backgrounds. One third of these people are college graduates. Owen Middle and High schools makes sure that the kids in Black Mountain get top-quality education. The crime rate of 0.87 adds to the sense of security of its residents who enjoy all of these advantages at a cost of living lower than the national average. Though the real estate in Black Mountain is more expensive than the national average, the cost of housing is five percent lower.