Columbia, Maryland has been named the best place to live in the U.S. by Money magazine.
Founded almost 50 years ago as one of the first planned communities in the country, it ranks in the top 5 percent of the 823 places on the magazine's 2016 list for job growth and economic opportunity.
“I sometimes tell people this is a little bit like the Land of Oz,” Gary Ahrens, a retired high school teacher and counselor who sells real estate for Keller Williams, told the magazine.
The idea of community building is part of the master plan. Each section in Columbia includes a mix of different types of residences, with offices and retail centers blended in as well.
The population is 55 percent white, 25 percent black, 12 percent Asian and 8 percent Latino.
Columbia was the only town in Maryland to make the list.
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