Holiday Blues: Cleveland, Detroit Top List Of Neediest Cities

Cleveland and Detroit have much in common – die hard sports fans, industrial towns and a desire to improve the inner city's well-being. And, just as people are getting ready to celebrate the holiday season, the two Rust Belt cities find themselves on the top of a new ranking of the neediest cities in the nation.

Detroit is No. 1 and Cleveland No. 2 on the list, compiled by WalletHub, an online site that offer financial advice and credit reports. Rounding out the Top 5 on the list were Newark, New Jersey, Memphis, Tennessee, and Jackson, Mississippi.

Just a bit down the list, Toledo was ranked at No. 19.

The rankings are based on two primary dimensions: economic well-being and health and safety. Under economic well-being, cities were scored based on adult and child poverty rates, unemployment and underemployment rates, homelessness, and foreclosure and consumer bankruptcy rates, among other factors.

Under health and safety, the site factored in suicide and crime rates, the number of over-crowded homes and the number of inadequate kitchens and plumbing of homes, among other factors.

Detroit ranked No. 1 in both economic well-being and the health and safety dimensions, while Cleveland was ranked No. 2 in each of them.

The complete Top 20 list:

1. Detroit, MI
2. Cleveland, OH
3. Newark, NJ
4. Memphis, TN
5. Jackson, MS
6. Atlanta, GA
7. Fresno, CA
8. Los Angeles, CA
9. St. Louis, MO
10. Indianapolis, IN
11. Gulfport, MS
12. Philadelphia, PA
13. Brownsville, TX
14. Birmingham, AL
15. Little Rock, AR
16. New Orleans, LA
17. Shreveport, LA
18. Baltimore, MD
19. Toledo, OH
20. San Bernardino, CA

File photo by Andrew Burton / Getty Images staff