Miserable old Lansing

Lansing ranks 13th in Forbes’ list of America’s Most Miserable Cities

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Thursday, Feb. 2 —Thursday, Feb. 2 — Don't look for Capital Gains to pick up this story.

No, the publication focused on positive news in the area likely won’t mention that Forbes placed Lansing at 13th on its recent list of America’s Most Miserable Cities.

As the city of Lansing gloats in recently being ranked atop U.S. metros in manufacturing and transportation by the Urban Institute, Forbes ranks the Capital City high on the much less flattering list.

Here’s why Lansing ranked 13th, according to Forbes: “Lansing makes the cut thanks to lots of foreclosures, high property taxes and lousy weather. One bright spot: short commutes to work for the metro area’s 467,000 residents.”

Lansing is sandwiched on the list between Ohio and California cities: Slightly better than Stockton, Calif., and Cleveland and slightly worse than Akron and Merced, Calif. Michigan has the second highest number of cities in the top 20 (four), behind only California (six).

According to its website, Forbes “looked at 10 factors for the 200 largest metro areas and divisions in the U.S. to determine America’s Most Miserable Cities. Some are serious, like violent crime, unemployment rates, foreclosures, taxes (income and property), home prices and political corruption. Other metrics we included are less weighty, like commute times, weather and how the area’s pro sports teams did. While sports, commuting and weather can be considered trivial by many, they can be the determining factor in the level of misery for a significant number of people.”

Michigan, Florida and California dominated the top 20. While Miami took the top slot, Detroit and Flint came in at second and third, respectively. Warren is the fourth Michigan city, ranking 10th. Florida has three cities in the top 20 .

The top 20 also includes Chicago (sixth) and Gary, Ind. (20th)

News broke last week that Lansing ranked first out of the top 100 U.S. metros in goods producing, manufacturing and transportation and utilities by the Urban Institute. “But it’s also worth noting that the same metro ranked dead last in the leisure and hospitality sector,” an Atlantic magazine blog noted last week.

Forbes is a publishing company best known for its magazine and several lists, including the 400 Richest Americans and the World’s Most Powerful People.

Here’s a link to the Forbes story and list.

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