This Michigan City is the ‘Neediest’ City in America

Going into the holiday season, people seem to be in a giving mood.

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We give thanks, we give presents, we give a lot of time and energy. We also give to charity. This is the time of year where people donate time, money, and goods to those in need.

The 'Neediest Cities in America 2024'

Need can look a lot of different ways. Need can look like living paycheck-to-paycheck. Need can look like food insecurity, or child poverty.

No matter what form need takes, there are some places that could use a bit more help than others, and that's what WalletHub took a look at recently.

Read Related: This Michigan City Seems to Be the 'Worst' at Everything

WalletHub looked at over 180 different cities and looked at two main categories to determine which cities were most needy; Economic well-being and health & safety.

Within those categories, they compared things like

• child & adult poverty rates
• unemployment rates
• foreclosure rates
• high school dropout rate
• food insecurity
• adults who need to see a doctor but can't afford one
• suicide rate
• crime rate

Read Related: This Michigan City is 'The Ugliest City in America'

After looking over a multitude of facets and giving them a score, WalletHub was able to determine which city was the 'neediest', and sadly, it's right here in Michigan.

That would be Detroit.

Detroit is the 'Neediest' City in America

Here's what WalletHub had to say about Detroit;

Detroit is the neediest city, in large part due to the fact that it has the highest unemployment rate in the nation, at 8.3%. Motown also has the second-highest adult poverty rate and third-highest child poverty rate in the country, with more than a quarter of adults and close to half of children living below the poverty line. While Detroit is known for its big role in the auto industry and is part of the backbone of America’s economy, its own residents are unfortunately struggling. Detroit’s needs aren’t all financial, though. Safety is a big concern, too, as the city has the second-highest violent crime rate in the nation (per 1,000 residents) and one of the highest crime rates overall.

It's so sad and shocking to read analytics like that. Detroit has definitely had some hard times, but I feel like it's making strides in coming back.

The other Michigan city on the list is Grand Rapids, coming in at 109 out of 180. If you'd like to see how other cities across the nation compare, click HERE.