Forbes Magazine released its list of the 20 Most Miserable Cities in the United States on February 22, 2013, and the results are, for the most part, not too surprising and show there are still plenty of American cities that have not felt much relief since the bottoming- out of the Great Recession.
Economic problems continue to plague certain parts of the country with the Midwest, California, and a few other regions still struggling to see financial improvements. At the top of many lists of financially struggling states is Michigan so it shouldn’t surprise anyone that the honor of Most Miserable City in the United States goes to Detroit. High unemployment, widespread violent crime, historically low home prices, and other problems continue to plague the Motor City and have contributed to its top ranking. Following Detroit is neighboring Flint, Michigan, another city with similar economic woes and a very sluggish economic turnaround.
Financial problems are bound to increase a city’s misery ranking, but Forbes list is based on much more than economic matters. There are, in fact, nine metrics used to determine a city’s misery ranking. They factors are violent crime, unemployment, income tax, property tax, foreclosures, home prices, commute times, weather, and net migration. The latter three measures are given less weight than the first three, since they are less important overall.
So, what are America’s most gloomy, despair- ridden urban areas? Here is the complete top 20 list according to Forbes research:
- Detroit, MI
- Flint, MI
- Rockford, IL
- Chicago, IL
- Modesto, CA
- Vallejo, CA
- Warren, MI
- Stockton, CA
- Lake County, IL
- New York, NY
- Toledo, OH
- St. Louis, MO
- Camden, NJ
- Milwaukee, WI
- Atlantic City, NJ
- Atlanta, GA
- Cleveland, OH
- Poughkeepsie, NY
- Gary, IN
- Youngstown, OH
Common characteristics in the top 20 are above average unemployment, high foreclosure rates, and an ongoing exodus of residents seeking better opportunities elsewhere. For cities like those in Michigan and other Midwestern states, the addition of lousy weather adds more pain to an already dismal situation and pushes the rankings lower.
Two cities on the list that may surprise some are Chicago and New York. There is no doubt that both of these cities have much to offer, from great museums and restaurants to diverse culture and more. What are often overlooked, however, are the high costs of living, long commutes, declining home prices, high foreclosure rates, and awful winter weather conditions experienced in one or both of these large metropolitan areas.
Some may debate whether one or more of the factors used to calculate the misery index deserves inclusion in the research, but most would agree that financial matters are very important to a city’s livability and its residents’ overall happiness. Until the economic recovery reaches the twenty cities listed above, there will little movement of these financially- strapped cities away from the ranks of misery and the grip of anguish.
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