If you’ve got the money and the time, Chapel Hill is the place for you.

That’s the latest word from CNN Money Magazine, which has ranked the town 15th out of 25 best places for the rich and single.

Earlier this month, the magazine also recognized Chapel Hill as one of the Best Places to Live in America.

According to CNN Money Magazine, 51 percent of the town’s 58,960 residents is single, and the median family income is $105,327. The article cited the town’s nationally known restaurants and dozens of clubs and music venues as making it a great place to meet new people:

“In Chapel Hill, the color of money runs Carolina blue. Home to UNC, the town and its people exude college-town cool with a healthy dose of Southern charm. For sheer numbers in your dating pool, catch some Tar Heel b-ball at the Dean Dome along with 20,000 like-minded individuals.”

If that's not good enough for you, consider these other hot spots for being young and fabulous:

1. Newton, Mass.

2. Hoboken, N.J.

3. Brookline, Mass.

4. Arlington, Va.

5. Redondo Beach, Calif.

6. Irvine, Calif.

7. Sandy Springs, Ga.

8. Towson, Md.

9. Oak Park, Ill.

10. Mountain View, Calif.

Chapel Hill ranks 10th among the top 100 "Best Places to Live in America" based on a survey of cities with populations between 50,000 and 300,000 by Money magazine.

"Chapel Hill is an incredibly unique place to live," Mayor Mark Kleinschmidt said in a new release today. "Our town is in constant motion with new ideas and trend setters. We are thrilled with our ranking and thank Money Magazine for the recognition."



Money looked at housing affordability, education, arts and culture, safety, health care, diversity and the economy, including the fiscal strength of the government. 



Here's how Money describes Chapel Hill: 



Chapel Hill ranks 10^th on Money Magazine’s annual list of the 100 top places to live. Cary is the only other North Carolina city that makes the list, in 56^th place.

The list aims to rank the best places to live and raise a family. The last time the list ranked cities of this same size, in 2010, Cary ranked 23^rd and Chapel Hill 40^th.

The magazine noted the charm of the many trees in Chapel Hill, which lead to what it calls a “rain forest-like charm.” The positives of the town mentioned are its proximity to the Research Triangle, the Triangle’s high number of Ph.Ds per capita and UNC-Chapel Hill, the nation’s oldest public university.

Cary’s advantages are its weather, safe streets, accommodations for bicyclists and the U.S.A. Baseball National Training Complex, as well as its proximity to universities and Research Triangle Park.

The magazine ranks the top places to live from statistics provided by data company Onboard Informatics. This year, the list ranked cities with populations between 50,000 and 300,000. Last year’s list focused on small towns with populations between 8,500 and 50,000.

Cities were screened out if they ranked above 200 percent or below 85 percent of the state average, had a population that is more than 95 percent one race, scored poorly in education or crime, had major job losses. Retirement communities were also ruled out.

The remaining cities were then ranked based on their economy, home affordability, schools, safety, health care, culture and leisure, diversity, and ease of living. State and local governments were also taken into account, as well as happiness, with the most weight given to economic conditions.

Each of the cities received visits where residents were interviewed and traffic, parks, gathering places  and community spirit were assessed.

This region cracks the top 10 (often at No. 1) on so many lists related to jobs, careers, doing business and such.

So it's almost shocking to see Wake County all the way down at No. 15 of Money Magazine's latest list of "Where the jobs are."

To be fair, it's a bit of a lagging indicator. The list of 25 counties is based on job and population growth 2000-2010, as well as places where unemployment was below the national average.

Rockwell County, Texas, came in at No. 1. Loudoun County, Va., was No. 2, and Williamson County, Texas, was No. 3.

Good test scores, among other features, helped rank Cary among CNN/Money magazine's 2010 Best Places to Live in America list.

Cary ranked No. 23 on the list of 100 places that was released today and will be in the magazine's August issue. The magazine looked at figures such as median family income, job growth, school test scores and crime rates.

One drawback, the magazine noted, is that fast growth has resulted in school overcrowding in Cary.

Money magazine seems to like Cary as it has named the town to its list of best places to live for the third time in four years.

In the new list in Money's August issue, Cary ranks 16th. The only other North Carolina city in the top 100 is Chapel Hill at 65th.

There is an education connection to this post.