O.C. 27th on Magazine’s List of Best Places to Live

NEW YORK — An annual ranking of the best places to live in the United States, released Tuesday by Money magazine, puts Orange County at No. 27, up from No. 60 last year.

Los Angeles is ranked No. 22, up from No. 40 last year, and San Diego is at No. 28, a fall from No. 16 last year.

Ranked No. 1 overall is Nashua, N.H., a former mill town along the Massachusetts border with a booming economy and surrounding areas that “ooze classic Yankee charm,” Money said in its July issue.

Davenport, Iowa, is ranked last among the 300 largest U.S. metropolitan areas. Money said Davenport is still struggling from a farm recession in the mid-1980s and has a high rate of violent crime.

“Even so, residents feel their place is a pretty darn fine spot to live,” Money said diplomatically.

Money’s list has been generating more and more attention over the years, making it a source of civic pride for some cities and embarrassment for others.

Money compiles the list by asking readers to name factors most important to them and collecting relevant data for the 300 largest metropolitan areas.

Among the key criteria listed this year were low crime, clean water and air, good schools and inexpensive living.

Surprisingly, living near a big city or major airport were low on the list.

One researcher who has studied Money magazine’s list in previous years said that big changes in ranking indicate the report is flawed and misleading.

Thomas Guterbock, director of survey research at the University of Virginia, said that Money relies more on short-term economic factors than it admits.

“It’s really a poll about America’s financially hot places to live. And if you can read it that way, you’ll be able to track these dizzying changes, and it will make sense,” Guterbock said.

Money disputed the assertions, saying its readers decide how much each factor should be weighted.