Forbes Ranking Finds Cities in "Free Fall"

The Forbes ranking accounted for median home prices, building permits, net population change, GDP and percent change in unemployment between 2007 and 2010. It found that cities with the worst economic performance are concentrated in Florida, the Southwest and California.

"Cities in the 'Sand States' of Florida, California, Arizona and Nevada, where overbuilding was rampant, are...in trouble, claiming nine of the top 10 spots in our list of cities in free fall...The long-term consequences of the housing crash in these cities are still playing out, and new factors that complicate a recovery keep cropping up.

Florida cities dominate our list, with Tampa, Orlando and Jacksonville joining Miami. Florida's real estate market keeps falling even as some herald the start of a rebound...Picturesque Providence, R.I., is the only New England metro on our list. Economically, it's struggling far more than other cities in the region. California cities are struggling too. Riverside, Los Angeles and Sacramento are suffering because of the knocks they took after their inflated housing markets began to plummet. Unemployment in the City of Angels has nearly tripled in three years, to 12%. Riverside's unemployment has also ballooned, to 15%. Meanwhile Sacramento saw a 75% drop in new building permits."