Best Place to Raise Your Kids: Florida

Best Place to Raise Your Kids: Florida

Pembroke Pines

Nearest city: Fort Lauderdale
Population: 164,259
Median family income: $78,660
Runners-up: Sunrise, Tamarac

Pembroke Pines, a fast-growing city about 15 miles south of downtown Fort Lauderdale, Fla., is our top Florida pick for the second straight year. The city is popular with retirees but also has plenty of young families, many of which left Miami Dade County to fill its shiny new developments during the housing boom. Among the attractions for these young families: low crime, the Pembroke Lakes Mall, and the schools, which include a charter high school.