Forbes Names Seal Beach 4th Friendliest Town in U.S.

Hey neighbor!  You live in the 4th Friendliest Town in America, according to the latest Forbes’ ranking.

The magazine recently released its list of top 15 pleasant places. While Seal took fourth, Sammamish, Washington took first. 

To hone in on the most-welcoming communities, the magazine used data from the U.S. Census, the FBI, the Chronicle of Philanthropy and City-data.com to judge metropolitan areas with populations between 5,500 and 150,000. The four main criteria they used for judging were:

• Home ownership, (according to Forbes, studies have shown a direct correlation between homeownership and neighborhood stability
• The crime rate
• Charitable giving
• Percentage of college graduates (according to Forbes, research shows college-educated citizens typically display more civic engagement, having higher rates of voting and volunteerism.)

The magazine then teamed up with www.nextdoor.com, which did surveys of residents to finalize the top 15.

Seal Beach Mayor Pro Tem Ellery Deaton said she thinks her city deserves the ranking because of the quality of life, the way the neighbors treat each other and how the locals form “a really tight nit community. “

“I think they're just a really low-key, happy-to-be-here folk,” Deaton said. “I think everyone one of us feels privileged to live in Seal Beach.”

You can see a photo slideshow of the top 15 friendliest towns by clicking here. 

Including Seal Beach, eight of the 15 friendliest towns are Patch communities.

• Orinda, California
• Sammamish, Washington
• Herndon, Virginia
• Hopkins, Minnesota
• Alpharetta, Georgia
• Downer's Grove, Illinois
• Huntington Woods, Michigan