Recessions strike suddenly, but there are economic indicators that citizens can consider ahead of any unpredictable financial shockwave. These five factors were selected for this graphic because they would put a state at greater risk within a recession–like a high unemployment rate or rate of mortgages that have gone underwater–or they could help a state recover from an economic downturn–like a high disposable income. The levels of “Weak”, “Middle” and “Strong” were computed by cutting the range of values, from minimum value to maximum, in thirds and ranking each state’s value based on that unweighted range. All data represents the latest available data for 2017, except for the Median Household Income, which was for 2016.
| State | Housing Cost / Income (2016) | Unemployment Rate (2017) | Student Debt (2016) | Underwater Mortgages (2017) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alabama | 19.09 | 4.4 | 31275 | 13.66194 |
| 2 | Alaska | 20.06 | 7.2 | 26008 | 3.79955 |
| 3 | Arizona | 21.85 | 4.9 | 23447 | 8.20325 |
| 4 | Arkansas | 18.32 | 3.7 | 26859 | 12.30079 |
| 5 | California | 26.52 | 4.8 | 22744 | 4.04318 |
| 6 | Colorado | 22.54 | 2.8 | 26520 | 3.60735 |
| 7 | Connecticut | 22.32 | 4.7 | 35494 | 9.66092 |
| 8 | Delaware | 20.87 | 4.6 | 33838 | 11.22595 |
| 9 | Florida | 24.11 | 4.2 | 24461 | 10.18444 |
| 10 | Georgia | 21.49 | 4.7 | 27657 | 13.06253 |
| 11 | Hawaii | 24.51 | 2.4 | 26092 | 4.51717 |
| 12 | Idaho | 19.43 | 3.2 | 27130 | 7.76848 |
| 13 | Illinois | 20.85 | 5 | 29271 | 13.38939 |
| 14 | Indiana | 18.21 | 3.5 | 29562 | 9.27098 |
| 15 | Iowa | 16.98 | 3.1 | 29801 | 14.2477 |
| 16 | Kansas | 18.26 | 3.6 | 28776 | 11.31051 |
| 17 | Kentucky | 18.77 | 4.9 | 28910 | 10.55154 |
| 18 | Louisiana | 20.23 | 5.1 | 27138 | 19.19637 |
| 19 | Maine | 19.85 | 3.3 | 31295 | 7.91439 |
| 20 | Maryland | 21.93 | 4.1 | 27455 | 10.72188 |
| 21 | Massachusetts | 22.71 | 3.7 | 31563 | 5.23564 |
| 22 | Michigan | 19.43 | 4.6 | 30852 | 11.65309 |
| 23 | Minnesota | 18.88 | 3.5 | 31915 | 6.11143 |
| 24 | Mississippi | 19.46 | 5.1 | 29384 | 13.83195 |
| 25 | Missouri | 18.95 | 3.8 | 27532 | 12.80964 |
| 26 | Montana | 18.81 | 4 | 31065 | 6.5755 |
| 27 | Nebraska | 17.81 | 2.9 | 26585 | 9.14758 |
| 28 | Nevada | 22.77 | 5 | 24128 | 11.27667 |
| 29 | New Hampshire | 21.1 | 2.7 | 36367 | 6.52176 |
| 30 | New Jersey | 23.98 | 4.6 | 29878 | 9.91381 |
| 31 | New Mexico | 19.97 | 6.2 | 21373 | 8.66792 |
| 32 | New York | 24.03 | 4.7 | 30346 | 6.56532 |
| 33 | North Carolina | 20.57 | 4.6 | 25562 | 9.15003 |
| 34 | North Dakota | 15.21 | 2.6 | NA | 8.16092 |
| 35 | Ohio | 19.03 | 5 | 30351 | 13.1196 |
| 36 | Oklahoma | 18.28 | 4.3 | 25856 | 10.6263 |
| 37 | Oregon | 22.99 | 4.1 | 27321 | 3.8505 |
| 38 | Pennsylvania | 19.63 | 4.9 | 35759 | 13.97388 |
| 39 | Rhode Island | 22.4 | 4.5 | 31217 | 7.2577 |
| 40 | South Carolina | 19.98 | 4.3 | 30123 | 9.51828 |
| 41 | Tennessee | 19.97 | 3.7 | 26981 | 9.80596 |
| 42 | Texas | 20.79 | 4.3 | 26292 | 5.31875 |
| 43 | Utah | 19.73 | 3.2 | 19975 | 4.72177 |
| 44 | Vermont | 22.16 | 3 | 28662 | 5.79702 |
| 45 | Virginia | 21.41 | 3.8 | 29296 | 8.36809 |
| 46 | Washington | 22.23 | 4.8 | 24609 | 3.90957 |
| 47 | West Virginia | 16.35 | 5.2 | 27708 | 10.83315 |
| 48 | Wisconsin | 19.09 | 3.3 | 30059 | 11.70714 |
| 49 | Wisconsin | 19.09 | 2.9 | 30059 | 11.70714 |
| 50 | Wyoming | 17.39 | 4.2 | 25378 | 7.36805 |
| 51 | Wyoming | 17.39 | 3.9 | 25378 | 7.36805 |
Sources
Median Income from the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey for 2016
Disposable Income from the Bureau of Economic Analysis
Unemployment Rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics
Median Home Sale Price from Zillow
Underwater Mortgage Rates from ATTOM Data Solutions