TOLEDO, Ohio — Editor's note: The attached video is from "Stretching your dollar," WTOL 11 segment related to financial literacy that aired on Aug. 30, 2022.
In a study of U.S. Census data from America's 150 largest cities, Toledo, Ohio ranked 19th highest in terms of financial stressors.
Online financial advice company SmartAsset analyzed data provided by the U.S. Census to determine which cities experienced the most financial stressors. They published the top 35 of those surveyed.
The following variables were considered in calculation: June 2022 unemployment rate, poverty rate, percentage of residents struggling to afford housing and percentage of adults facing food insecurity. All four variables were given equal weight.
According to the study, Toledo clocked in with the following numbers:
- June unemployment rate: 4.6%
- Poverty rate: 25.6%
- Housing struggle: 16.03%
- Food scarcity: 11.8%
Of the individual variables, Toledo's poverty rate ranked the highest: among the surveyed cities, the 25.6% poverty rate was third highest, behind only Cleveland, Ohio (32%) and Brownsville, Texas (27.5%).
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However, Ohioans ranked low in food insecurity: as a state, around 11.8% of adult residents suffer from food insecurity, the third lowest among states in the surveyed cities. Louisiana was the highest, with 19% of adult residents suffering from food insecurity.
Toledo ranked behind Cleveland at 17, but much further ahead than Akron and Cincinnati, which came in at 32 and 33, respectively. Nationally, Augusta, Georgia came in at number one most financially stressed city, while Albuquerque, New Mexico ranked 35. SmartAsset did not provide ranks lower than 35.