California

Atherton

Median home price: $2.63 million
Cost of living index: 242%
Nonretail spending index: 245%
Transportation cost index: 205%
Location: about 10 miles northwest of Stanford
Population: 6,954

Scenic Atherton, located between the San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean, is one of the wealthiest towns in the country. It’s home to Eric Schmidt, chairman and CEO of Google; Charles Schwab, founder of the brokerage firm bearing his name; Meg Whitman, CEO of eBay; NFL football player Jerry Rice; and Lindsay Buckingham of rock group Fleetwood Mac.