The Inland Empire cities of San Bernardino and Stockton have been among the slowest-recovering cities in the entire country in the wake of the great recession, according to a study from the financial website WalletHub. When ranking the recovery of the country’s 150 most populous countries, Stockton ranked 149, and San Bernardino was dead last at 150.
The cities were scored on several economic factors, including unemployment rates, median income, and housing. Each of the 18 factors was then tracked to see how it fared in the recession recovery period. The rankings accounted for bankruptcy, which is why Stockton and San Bernardino found themselves at the bottom of the list—they both filed for bankruptcy in 2012.
Also somewhat alarming is that although California cities are dominating the bottom of the list, the top of the list is mostly absent from any cities from our fair state. The highest ranked city is San Francisco at a disappointing #20.
An economist weighed in on the list though, saying that although California fared poorly in this list, if a similar list were to be made, say, a year down the line, the highly populated areas of Los Angeles and Orange County may fare better, as they both have been experiencing rapid growth in the recent years.
See the full list and an interactive map here.