Survey of earnings and savings tarnishes Florida's shine

By HELEN HUNTLEY

© St. Petersburg Times, published January 15, 2001

The Tampa Bay area is slipping as a place to earn and save money, according to ING Financial Services. The insurance company got researchers at Arundel Street Consulting in St. Paul, Minn., to take a look at how the 125 largest U.S. metro areas stack up on 15 quality-of-life rankings.

The Tampa Bay area, which fell from 57th place last year to 80th, scored high on job creation, low unemployment, low cost of living and household wealth. But it ranked near the bottom of the pack on household income, crime rate and participation in retirement savings plans.

In general, Florida metro areas didn't fare too well. The highest ranking, 41st place, went to Sarasota-Bradenton and the lowest, 123rd place, to Miami. The Lakeland-Winter Haven area was considered one of the worst for earning money, and the Orlando and Miami areas ranked among the worst places to retire.

San Jose, Calif., and Washington, D.C., are ING's idea of good places to make money, while Boise City, Idaho, and Fort Wayne, Ind., scored high as retirement havens. Best overall went to the Middlesex-Somerset-Hunterdon metro area in New Jersey.

How area ranked

Here's how the Tampa Bay area ranked on some of the key factors ING Financial Services used to rate U.S. metro areas as places to earn and save money. The number listed is the ranking out of the 125 largest metro areas.

Earnings and Wealth Potential

Household income -- 113

Household wealth -- 32

Years of education -- 85

Cost of living -- 33

Safety Net

Health insurance -- 85

Retirement savings plan participation -- 107

Personal Threats

Unemployment rate -- 25

Crime rate -- 115

Community Economic Vitality

Job quality -- 73

Job creation -- 16

Housing affordability -- 48

Overall Ranking -- 80

Source: ING Financial Services (www.ing-usa.com)

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