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No. 5: Sacramento, Calif.
No state taxes $50,000 of income like California, with a rate of 9.55%
for that middle-class tax bracket. Sacramento is a one-team sports
town, and that team has been awful in recent years. The NBA's Kings
have won just 26% of their games the past two-plus seasons.
No. 4: Modesto, Calif.
The median home was valued at $275,000 in 2006; today it is $95,000.
And don't leave your car on the street in Modesto, where 3,712 vehicles
were stolen in 2009, making for the second-highest auto theft rate in
the country. It ranked first in four of the previous five years.
No. 3: Merced, Calif.
The economic downturn and busted housing market hit Merced harder than
any other area in the country. Average unemployment of 16.2% since 2008
is the highest in the U.S., as is the city's 64% drop in median home
prices.
No. 2: Miami, Fla.
The sun and lack of a state income tax are the only things keeping
Miami out of the top spot. Foreclosures hit one in 14 homes last year.
Corruption is also off the charts, with 404 government officials
convicted of crimes this decade in South Florida.
No. 1: Stockton, Calif.
Unemployment has averaged 14.3% the past three years, which is third
worst in the country among the 200 largest metro areas. The housing
market collapsed as well, with home prices down 58% over the same time.
All the California cities on the list are struggling with the inherent
problems the state is facing, including high sales and income taxes and
service cuts to help close massive budget shortfalls.
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Abba does Lawrence Welk?
ReplyDeleteTim
California only has 10 of the 20 spots?
ReplyDeleteWell done! You've not hit bottom yet!
How can Detroit not be number 1? There's a coffee table book out with some pictures of the city-it will make you sick.
ReplyDeleteMM
Detroit really isn't a city anymore, and hasn't been for a long time. It's a third world country.
ReplyDeleteOnly one thing missing from the piece... illegal aliens. The Central Valley is packed with them. Who do you think steals those cars?
Casca
With 4 of the top 5 being home (or within and hour of) is it any wonder why I left the 'Land of Milk and Honey'?
ReplyDeleteI keep telling my parents: "GET THE HELL OUTTA SACRAMENTO!!" (Yes, I have to say it that loud...they're getting old and more deaf by the day).
On a road trip back in my Air Force days I picked up my dad in Boston and drove across country. We stopped for lunch in Sparta, WI. He proclaimed that this was where he was going to retire to as he felt it was the last place on earth that had an 'honest to God' A&W (with the roller skate waitresses and tray that you hooked to your window). Too bad he didn't take his own advice...
We've lived in three of the eight cities listed for California. Both my husband and myself crossed ourselves before God when reading this list. A great home, great staging, and a great Realtor have allowed us, by choice, to be real estate free for nearly two years.
ReplyDeleteStockton has always been a pit. The crime level there for cops to keep up with gang crimes is legendary. But #1?! before Detroit, Flint, Chicago? wowzers... Salinas deserved the falling prices. That gang ridden town has crappy foggy weather all summer long and was expensive as hell just because it was "near" Monterey/Carmel.
We left Sacramento in '85 and a year and a half later the corner park we took our young'ngs to was a Crip hang out. We bought low in Merced'95 when Castle Air Base closed and sold high in 2002 when the realty value was made stupidly high because a UC campus was coming to town and speculators priced locals out of the market, then walked away at the crash. It used to be an okay, very friendly little town.
We were quite recently tempted to purchase in Naples, FL. But. Just can't trust a damn thing anymore. More likely a monetary crash will occur before housing/mortgage stability gets established. So, for now, we just count ourselves lucky and Blessed. *word*
(P.S. We also lived in great places like Lake Tahoe for 8 yrs.)
*
Casca~ You be spot on. It is the problem with California.
ReplyDeleteYou lived in Merced? I've often thought about it. Castle has one of the last three existing B-36 bombers in their museum, and Merced is the Western gateway to Yosemite.
ReplyDeleteWait, this is like rating dumps by how high the garbage is piled.
ReplyDeleteAnony 12:35~
ReplyDeleteMoved to Merced from Redding in '95 and the cultural mix took a bit to get used to. By the time we moved to Yuba City in 2002 I hated to leave. Merced is well situated to Yosemite, Sacramento, SF, Monterey/Carmel, and Gold Country Foothills. HOWever, 'have no idea what has become of it since then. No doubt with unemployment the crime stats are up significantly.
Oh, it's skeevy. I used to drive to Merced to spend the night in a nasty hotel room before racing up the Merced River Valley to Yosemite with the convertible top down in the early morning. No traffic, spectacular views, and you can drive like a maniac.
ReplyDeleteForgot to sign before.
Casca
The 'rents still live in College Green area of Sac ('tween Watt and Howe near Sac State). Was great growing up there (60's - 70's). Joined the AF in early 80's and didn't come back 'til '89. First thing I said to my dad as we were coming out of the foothills was, "WTF? Is this L.A. North?" Smog was (and still is) so bad.
ReplyDeleteNearly got stationed at McClellan, Beale and Travis. Thank God for short tours in Korea!
Juice: were you living in South Sac in '85? I went to Christian Brothers HS and THAT was the true pit!
Casca: coming into Yosemite from the north in a '70 'Cuda ain't too bad either! :D
Skeevy, Casca? Man. Well, no surprise really, but sad. Also did the Yosemite drive in my '97 Mustang convertible. Nice ride. :)
ReplyDeleteEl Jefe,
ReplyDeleteNot S.Sac, N-NW near Elkhorn-Greenback off 80. Spruce park was nice until the Crips started slinging there. Before our son began K in '84, got an inter district transfer from Foothill Elementary to Pioneer Elementary (we were blocks away from). You get why? The k-8 was directly across the street from Foothill High (already had uniformed SPD on campus).
The son's frat house was in the Tahoe Park area. Near College Green? To use Casca's term, skeevy!
Sorry to reminisce. Thanks. P.S. Corti Brothers Mkt!!
El Jefe~
ReplyDeleteGots to share this:
When our daughter was considering Air Force they took her on a tour of Travis. After living 6yrs in Merced, she came home commenting something positive about all the "white boys." She's been in USAF now for 10 yrs, though never stationed in CA. :D
Juice ~
ReplyDeleteCorti Brothers RULES! One of the few reasons I'll actually visit back home!
Yeah, Tahoe Park wasn't too far away :D
Glad to hear your daughter chose the right branch! ;)
@ElJefe~ Thumbs up, :)
ReplyDeleteAs OT as you can get... but..
ReplyDeletehttp://www.johnweeks.com/b36/index.html
I just spent an hour looking for the above... why? I don't know. Just find old aircraft enticingly interesting. I had spent half a day just looking a week or so ago, but didn't book mark it.
The above site indicates there may be more Peacemakers than noted.
Back to the topic, landed at Travis on return from Sasebo, Japan forward deployment. Many trips through Modesto en route to Yellowstone or Lake Don Pedro. KHOP-fm... 20 years ago or so.
tomw