Each place had to be beautiful, safer than the US average on reported crime, and either a town of 5,000+ people or within about 30–40 minutes of one.
Safe both violent and property crime below the US average.
Mixed violent crime low, but property crime at or above average (common in tourist towns, where visitors inflate per-resident rates).
Stretch low crime and too beautiful to leave out, but it breaks the 5,000-people rule.
Small towns swing a lot from year to year: one bad month can double a rate in a town of 2,000. Treat these numbers as a rough guide, not a guarantee.