Most & Least Recession-Recovered Cities

For many Americans today, the Great Recession is nothing more than the distant shadow of a troubled economic past. After all, the longest downturn since the Great Depression officially ended in June 2009, and cities coast to coast have completely bounced back. Some have even surpassed their pre-recession economic levels, thanks to lucrative industries that helped them rebuild or stay afloat through the crisis.

Yet the effects of the recession still reverberate in various parts of the U.S., falling deeper into debt and leaving millions of Americans wondering whether the recession has indeed blown over. More than a dozen municipalities, including Detroit, have declared the rare Chapter 9 bankruptcy since 2008.

To measure the progress of local economies since the financial crisis and how much work remains to be done in the name of recovery, WalletHub compared 505 U.S. cities of varying sizes across 18 key economic indicators. Our data set ranges from “inflow of college-educated workers” to “share of households receiving public assistance” to “homeownership rate.” Continue reading below for our findings, expert commentary and a full description of our methodology.

Main Findings

Ranking by City Size

Ask the Experts

Local economies still struggling to rebound from the downturn risk losing their skilled workforce or filing for bankruptcy. But, with some strategizing, they may be able to avoid such lasting consequences and extreme remedies. We turned to a panel of leading experts for advice on what policymakers, businesses and citizens can focus on in order to achieve recovery. Click on the experts’ profiles to read their bios and responses to following key questions.

1. How can local authorities make their cities more “recession-proof”?
2. What can public and private sectors do to facilitate economic growth?
3. What are some leading indicators that a city is poised for an economic upswing? What might suggest an impending downturn?
4. Are there any benefits to moving to an economically depressed city?
5. How should residents decide when it's time to cut their losses and move from an economically depressed city?

Methodology

To assess the progress of local cities in propelling their economic growth, WalletHub’s analysts compared 505 U.S. cities of varying sizes across two key dimensions, including “Employment & Earning Opportunities” and “Economic Environment.”

Our sample considers only the city proper in each case and excludes cities in the surrounding metro area. Each city was categorized based on the following population-size guidelines:

• Large City: More than 300,000 residents
• Midsize City: 125,000 to 300,000 residents
• Small City: 63,700 to 125,000 residents

We evaluated each dimension using 18 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with 100 representing the highest level of economic recovery.

For each metric (except “Chapter 9 Bankruptcy Filing”), we analyzed the change between the city’s pre- and post-recession levels. Data for metrics marked with an asterisk (*) were available only at the state level.

Finally, we calculated overall scores for each city based on its weighted average across all metrics and used the resulting scores to rank the cities accordingly.

Employment & Earning Opportunities – Total Points: 50

• Unemployment Rate: Double Weight (~12.50 Points)
• Inflow of College-Educated Workers (%): Full Weight (~6.25 Points)
• Ratio of Part-Time to Full-Time Jobs: Full Weight (~6.25 Points)
• Median Household Income: Full Weight (~6.25 Points)
• Labor-Force Participation Rate: Double Weight (~12.50 Points)
• Non-Farm Payrolls Change: Full Weight (~6.25 Points)

Economic Environment – Total Points: 50

• Median Home Price: Full Weight (~4.00 Points)
• Homeownership Rate: Full Weight (~4.00 Points)
• Foreclosure Rate: Full Weight (~4.00 Points)
• Poverty Rate: Full Weight (~4.00 Points)
• Share of Households Receiving Public Assistance: Full Weight (~4.00 Points)
• Population Size: Full Weight (~4.00 Points)
• Bankruptcy: Half* Weight (~2.00 Points)
• Number of Businesses: Full Weight (~4.00 Points)
• Average Experian Vantage Credit Score: Full Weight (~4.00 Points)
• Consumer Non-Housing Debt: Full Weight (~4.00 Points)
• GMP (Gross Metropolitan Product): Full Weight (~4.00 Points)
• Chapter 9 Bankruptcy Filing: Double Weight (~8.00 Points)
  Note: This is a binary metric that considers either the presence or absence of a Chapter 9 (municipal) bankruptcy filing.

Sources: Data used to create this ranking were collected from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, ATTOM Data Solutions (RealtyTrac), Experian and United States Common Sense.