Rockford One Of The 'Worst Cities To Live In' According To Study

ROCKFORD, IL — Do you ever compare where you live to other cities across the U.S., especially when it comes to quality of life? According to USA TODAY, financial news website 24/7 Wall St. recently collected and compared data from several categories in roughly 600 U.S. cities that the U.S. Census Bureau reported as having populations of more than 50,000 in 2016 to determine America's 50 worst cities to live in.

24/7 Wall St. created an index with measures in nine categories - crime, demography, economy, education, environment, health, housing, infrastructure, and leisure - to identify and share the country's worst cities to live in, which includes Rockford, Illinois.

Coming in at number 16, 24/7 Wall St. found that Rockford's unemployment rate of 7.7 percent is the highest of any Illinois city and well above the 4.9 percent annual U.S. jobless rate. More findings:

• Population: 147,404
• Median home value: $89,200 - less than half the median home value of $186,500 across Illinois
• Poverty rate: 22.6%
• Pct. with at least a bachelor's degree: 22.6%

The city also ranks as the most dangerous in the state, with a violent crime rate of 1,658 incidents per 100,000 residents in 2016 -- which is more than four times the U.S. violent crime rate.

The top five worst cities to live in, according to 24/7 Wall St.:

1. Detroit, Michigan

2. Flint, Michigan

3. St. Louis, Missouri

4. Memphis, Tennessee

5. Cleveland, Ohio

>> See the full list and city breakdown

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