The 30 Brokest Cities in America, from Detroit to Miami

The Daily Beast finds the 30 poorest cities—from Detroit to Miami—in the country.

By The Daily BeastPublished Oct 31, 2011 9:01PM EDT

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-teaser_xt2r4f — For a nation mired in seemingly never-ending economic doldrums, turns out the summer wasn’t half bad. From July to September, the U.S. economy grew 2.5 percent, double the rate from April to June. Unemployment is expected to stay level through the winter, and consumer spending rose .6 percent in September, coupled with a small increase in personal income.

Yet much of the nation is still struggling to pay the bills. Wall Street can’t figure out whether to be bullish or bearish, and overall student debt recently surpassed $1 trillion. The economy is certainly recovering—the annual GDP rate was up 2.5 percent from July to September, the best rate in a year—but ask anyone at Occupy Wall Street: We’re still a long way away from pre-recession numbers making a real difference in the average American’s life.

In short, the national numbers are promising, but plenty of people are still hurting. To find the most struggling cities in the country, we used three data points weighted equally: the most recently available unemployment rate (August 2011), median household income, and average debt. Data is from a recent report by Experian and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The average credit score for each city is included in the gallery, though not taken into account to determine the final ranking. If this data is any indication, the cities struggling the most right now—the ones that may take the longest to recover—are clustered in the South and along the Pacific Coast.

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-30-las-vegas_oo1ohb — Unemployment: 14.2%

Median household income: $51,437

Average personal debt: $24,975

Average credit score: 709
AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-29-orlando_jg2lx9 — Unemployment: 10.3%

Median household income: $46,478

Average personal debt: $24,747

Average credit score: 734
Phelan M. Ebenhack / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-28-miami_wstsbc — Unemployment: 11.2%

Median household income: $45,352

Average personal debt: $24,030

Average credit score: 719
AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-27-jacksonville_bjqzst — Unemployment: 10.4%

Median household income: $50,324

Average personal debt: $25,433

Average credit score: 727
AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-26-flint_a2h1os — Unemployment: 11.4%

Median household income: $38,819

Average personal debt: $23,075

Average credit score: 747
Paul Sancya / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-25-savannah_wpufhi — Unemployment: 9.5%

Median household income: $46,755

Average personal debt: $25,561

Average credit score: 716
David Goldman / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-24-ft-myers_nlza8o — Unemployment: 11.5%

Median household income: $43,936

Average personal debt: $24,079

Average credit score: 750
AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-23-birmingham_gaupcv — Unemployment: 9.0%

Median household income: $44,216

Average personal debt: $25,218

Average credit score: 731
Dennis Lathem / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-22-charleston_uzbifi — Unemployment: 9.6%

Median household income: $48,062

Average personal debt: $26,391

Average credit score: 731
AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-21-tyler_pe6zgt — Unemployment: 8.3%

Median household income: $43,209

Average personal debt: $26,048

Average credit score: 710
AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-20-elpaso_jmegow — Unemployment: 10.6%

Median household income: $36,015

Average personal debt: $23,639

Average credit score: 710
AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-19-montgomery_zwpopa — Unemployment: 9.9%

Median household income: $45,513

Average personal debt: $25,053

Average credit score: 712
Dave Martin / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-18-detroit_qactfr — Unemployment: 12.9%

Median household income: $48,198

Average personal debt: $25,073

Average credit score: 743
AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-17-wilmington-nc_x5pfjx — Unemployment: 10.5%

Median household income: $44,825

Average personal debt: $24,716

Average credit score: 745
Logan Mock-Bunting / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-16-greensboro_tclnym — Unemployment: 11.0%

Median household income: $41,120

Average personal debt: $23,971

Average credit score: 748
Lynn Hey / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-15-reno-nv_dqefy8 — Unemployment: 13%

Median household income: $50,699

Average personal debt: $25,634

Average credit score: 740
AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-14-macon_lixiui — Unemployment: 10.4%

Median household income: $37,507

Average personal debt: $23,775

Average credit score: 715
Moses Robinson

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-13-waco_pcpdho — Unemployment: 8.1%

Median household income: $39,143

Average personal debt: $27,004

Average credit score: 713
Ronald Martinez / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-12-yakima_cjd5dh — Unemployment: 10.0%

Median household income: $40,648

Average personal debt: $24,951

Average credit score: 759
Shannon Dininny / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-11-toledo_jy9hkk — Unemployment: 9.6%

Median household income: $41,583

Average personal debt: $25,348

Average credit score: 750
Paul Sancya / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-10-augusta_cbmob9 — Unemployment: 9.6%

Median household income: $44,477

Average personal debt: $26,204

Average credit score: 709
Rob Carr / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-9-chico_ear65c — Unemployment: 13.8%

Median household income: $41,657

Average personal debt: $24,734

Average credit score: 754
AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-8-tampa_c47nuo — Unemployment: 11.0%

Median household income: $43,547

Average personal debt: $25,376

Average credit score: 740
AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-7-mobile_wvgnjz — Unemployment: 11%

Median household income: $39,998

Average personal debt: $24,919

Average credit score: 737
AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-6-bakersfield_khi1r4 — Unemployment: 14.4%

Median household income: $45,524

Average personal debt: $25,697

Average credit score: 709
AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-5-medford_x2xavw — Unemployment: 11.2%

Median household income: $40,177

Average personal debt: $25,013

Average credit score: 760
Jeff Barnard / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-4-greenville_cfglfd — Unemployment: 10.9%

Median household income: $39,664

Average personal debt: 25,177

Average credit score: 730
AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-3-beaumont_avnd3m — Unemployment: 11.5%

Median household income: $41,291

Average personal debt: $25,277

Average credit score: 716
Pat Sullivan / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-2-harlingen_rxtzdp — Unemployment: 12.5%

Median household income: $31,736

Average personal debt: $25,074

Average credit score: 686
AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/31/america-s-30-brokest-cities-photos/brokest-cities-1-columbusga_pcd2uv — Unemployment: 9.8%

Median household income: $36,553

Average personal debt: $27,928

Average credit score: 721
AP Photo

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