RALEIGH, NC -- Three North Carolina communities are in the top 50 of Money Magazine's Best places to live among cities with a population between 10,000 to 50,000 residents, but Apex in Wake County was ranked best in the entire country.

Apex Mayor Bill Sutton says the nearby Research Triangle Park is a major reason people look at living in Apex.

"People come here for jobs and then they've got to have a place to live. And one of the places they come looking is Apex. So that's helped us; jobs determine where people come to work and live and that has pushed our growth, no question about it."

Two other North Carolina communities on the list: Harrisburg came in at No.41 and Stallings was ranked 46th, both are near Charlotte. Pappillon, NE and Sharon, MA were ranked No.'s 2 and 3 on the list, respectively.