Since the Great Recession, cities have been struggling to recover their housing markets, job opportunities, and economies overall. The recovery has been spotty – in some cities and states more than in others.
(Photo Credit: Larry Johnson/Flickr)
Recently, WalletHub released their rankings of The Most and Least Recession-Recovered Cities. They profiled the 150 largest cities in the U.S. using 17 different economic indicators, including median home prices, population size, chapter 9 filings, unemployment rate, and median household income, to measure their progress. Let’s take a closer look at their findings.
The three most recession-recovered cities.
1. Lubbock, Texas.
With an “Employment and Earning Opportunity” ranking of 2, and its “Economic Environment” rank of 8, Lubbock Texas came out as the most recession-recovered city in the nation.
“It’s great to see Lubbock recognized for outstanding statistics,” said John Osborne, president and CEO of Lubbock Economic Development Alliance. “Due to our diverse economic portfolio, Lubbock is situated nicely to recover from a recession. We have thriving agriculture, heath care and education industries, but we also have significant retail, financial and manufacturing markets. Being a city varied in industry allows us to be more resilient when a recession hits.”
2. Denver, Colorado.
Census bureau data reported by The Denver Post confirms WalletHub’s high ranking of the city’s recovery. The median household income in Denver rose 5 percent last year, and the poverty level dropped by one-tenth. These numbers might help explain why Denver is also one of the country’s fastest growing cities.
Corpus Christi has seen the third-highest decrease in the poverty rate, according to WalletHub’s survey, but what’s even more significant is that the two cities that rank above it, Brownsville and El Paso, are in Texas as well. However, the state still has a real poverty problem and although their cities are growing fast, poverty levels in Texas remain high overall.
The three least recession-recovered cities.
1. San Bernardino, California.
With one of the lowest decreases to its poverty rate and one of the lowest home price appreciations of the cities surveyed, San Bernardino, California ranked as the least recession-recovered city in America. Efforts are being made toward development, education, and employment in the hopes of turning things around.
2. Tucson, Arizona.
Perhaps Tucson’s economic struggles are part of the reason so many turned out to hear Democratic Presidential Candidate Bernie Sanders speak this past Friday in their city. His proposed expansion of the Affordable Care Act, call for tuition-free college, and devotion to raising the minimum wage may have appealed to some citizens’ concerns about turning around the economic hardships facing some Tucson residents.
North Las Vegas, Nevada came in dead last in this survey’s Employment and Opportunities rank. Median household income is low while the ratio of part-time to full-time workers is high. Other data suggests the same: the unemployment rate of 7.7 percent is well above the national average, and the income per capita is almost 21 percent less than the state’s mean.
Check out the full list of results from WalletHub for more information.
Tell Us What You Think
How has your city recovered (or not) from the Great Recession? We want to hear from you! Leave a comment or join the discussion on Twitter.
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