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Are your finances in order for retirement? If not, you've got company.
A new study of the economic and demographic variables in 250 of the nation's largest counties finds that residents in more than half of them are not well prepared for retirement.
After looking at 30 different economic and demographic variables -- including the cost of living, home ownership data, population age, and access to pension funds -- the study found that people in 132 counties "face a high risk of not having enough income in retirement to allow them to maintain their standard of living."
Big risk factors
Counties with the highest risks, the study found:- are older in comparison to the average
- have lower household income than average (adjusted for local cost of living)
- consist of retirees living on a smaller percentage of their pre-retirement income than average
- are losing residents due to net out-migration
- have a higher percentage of low-income families (living on less than $35,000 annually) and a smaller percentage of high-income families (making over $150,000 annually) than average
- have comparatively low education levels
- include a smaller percentage of workers with access to defined-benefit plans
- have lower-than-average home ownership rates or higher-than-average levels of self-employment.
Risk levels were graded as very high, high, elevated, moderate, less or nominal.
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The six counties where Americans were in the greatest difficulty were all in Florida, the study found: Lee, Marion, Pasco, Polk, Sarasota and Volusia counties.
The areas where people appeared to be the best prepared for retirement were Collin County in Texas, Fairfax and Prince William counties in Virginia, Lake County in Illinois, and Somerset County in New Jersey.
Complete results for all 250 U.S. counties studied are available below. To see how your own retirement readiness measures up, use MSN Money's retirement calculator, life expectancy analysis or other retirement tools and resources.
The study, released July 13, 2006, and conducted by the Orzechowski & Walter consulting firm, was commissioned by Americans for Secure Retirement -- a coalition of alliances and associations based in Washington, D.C., that supports the use of annuities and other investment products that could help workers finance their retirements.
| County | State | Risk level | County | State | Risk level | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jefferson | Alabama | Elevated | St. Charles | Missouri | Moderate | |
Madison | Alabama | Elevated | St. Louis | Missouri | Elevated | |
Mobile | Alabama | High | St. Louis City | Missouri | High | |
Anchorage | Alaska | Less | Douglas | Nebraska | Moderate | |
Maricopa | Arizona | Elevated | Lancaster | Nebraska | Moderate | |
Pima | Arizona | Elevated | Clark | Nevada | Elevated | |
Pulaski | Arkansas | Elevated | Washoe | Nevada | Elevated | |
Alameda | California | Moderate | Hillsborough | New Hampshire | Less | |
Contra Costa | California | Moderate | Rockingham | New Hampshire | High | |
Fresno | California | High | Atlantic | New Jersey | Elevated | |
Kern | California | High | Bergen | New Jersey | Moderate | |
Los Angeles | California | Elevated | Burlington | New Jersey | Moderate | |
Marin | California | Moderate | Camden | New Jersey | Elevated | |
Monterey | California | Elevated | Essex | New Jersey | Moderate | |
Orange | California | Moderate | Gloucester | New Jersey | Moderate | |
Placer | California | Moderate | Hudson | New Jersey | Elevated | |
Riverside | California | Elevated | Mercer | New Jersey | Moderate | |
Sacramento | California | Elevated | Middlesex | New Jersey | Less | |
San Bernardino | California | Elevated | Monmouth | New Jersey | Less | |
San Diego | California | Elevated | Morris | New Jersey | Less | |
San Francisco | California | Moderate | Ocean | New Jersey | Elevated | |
San Joaquin | California | Elevated | Passaic | New Jersey | Moderate | |
San Luis Obispo | California | Elevated | Somerset | New Jersey | Nominal | |
San Mateo | California | Less | Union | New Jersey | Moderate | |
Santa Barbara | California | Elevated | Bernalillo | New Mexico | High | |
Santa Clara | California | Less | Albany | New York | Elevated | |
Santa Cruz | California | Moderate | Bronx | New York | High | |
Solano | California | Moderate | Dutchess | New York | Moderate | |
Sonoma | California | Moderate | Erie | New York | Elevated | |
Stanislaus | California | Elevated | Kings | New York | Elevated | |
Tulare | California | High | Monroe | New York | Elevated | |
Ventura | California | Moderate | Nassau | New York | Moderate | |
Adams | Colorado | Moderate | New York | New York | Elevated | |
Arapahoe | Colorado | Less | Oneida | New York | High | |
Boulder | Colorado | Less | Onondaga | New York | Elevated | |
Denver | Colorado | Elevated | Orange | New York | Moderate | |
El Paso | Colorado | Moderate | Queens | New York | Elevated | |
Jefferson | Colorado | Less | Richmond | New York | Moderate | |
Larimer | Colorado | Moderate | Rockland | New York | Less | |
Fairfield | Connecticut | Moderate | Suffolk | New York | Moderate | |
Hartford | Connecticut | Elevated | Westchester | New York | Moderate | |
New Haven | Connecticut | Elevated | Cumberland | North Carolina | Elevated | |
New London | Connecticut | Moderate | Forsyth | North Carolina | Elevated | |
New Castle | Delaware | Moderate | Guilford | North Carolina | Elevated | |
Washington | D.C. | Moderate | Mecklenburg | North Carolina | Moderate | |
Brevard | Florida | High | Wake | North Carolina | Less | |
Broward | Florida | Elevated | Butler | Ohio | Moderate | |
Collier | Florida | High | Cuyahoga | Ohio | Elevated | |
Duval | Florida | Elevated | Franklin | Ohio | Moderate | |
Escambia | Florida | High | Hamilton | Ohio | Elevated | |
Hillsborough | Florida | Elevated | Lake | Ohio | Moderate | |
Leon | Florida | Moderate | Lorain | Ohio | Elevated | |
Manatee | Florida | High | Lucas | Ohio | Elevated | |
Miami-Dade | Florida | High | Mahoning | Ohio | High | |
Orange | Florida | Elevated | Montgomery | Ohio | Elevated | |
Palm Beach | Florida | Elevated | Stark | Ohio | High | |
Pinellas | Florida | High | Summit | Ohio | Elevated | |
Seminole | Florida | Moderate | Oklahoma | Oklahoma | High | |
Lee | Florida | Very High | Tulsa | Oklahoma | Elevated | |
Marion | Florida | Very High | Clackamas | Oregon | Elevated | |
Pasco | Florida | Very High | Lane | Oregon | High | |
Polk | Florida | Very High | Marion | Oregon | High | |
Sarasota | Florida | Very High | Multnomah | Oregon | Elevated | |
Volusia | Florida | Very High | Washington | Oregon | Moderate | |
Chatham | Georgia | Elevated | Allegheny | Pennsylvania | Elevated | |
Clayton | Georgia | Moderate | Berks | Pennsylvania | Elevated | |
Cobb | Georgia | Less | Bucks | Pennsylvania | Moderate | |
DeKalb | Georgia | Moderate | Chester | Pennsylvania | Less | |
Fulton | Georgia | Moderate | Dauphin | Pennsylvania | Elevated | |
Gwinnett | Georgia | Less | Delaware | Pennsylvania | Elevated | |
Honolulu | Hawaii | Elevated | Erie | Pennsylvania | Elevated | |
Ada | Idaho | Moderate | Lancaster | Pennsylvania | Elevated | |
Cook | Illinois | Elevated | Lehigh | Pennsylvania | Elevated | |
DuPage | Illinois | Less | Luzerne | Pennsylvania | High | |
Kane | Illinois | Less | Montgomery | Pennsylvania | Moderate | |
Lake | Illinois | Nominal | Northampton | Pennsylvania | Elevated | |
Madison | Illinois | Elevated | Philadelphia | Pennsylvania | High | |
McHenry | Illinois | Less | Westmoreland | Pennsylvania | High | |
St. Clair | Illinois | Elevated | York | Pennsylvania | Elevated | |
Will | Illinois | Less | Providence | Rhode Island | Elevated | |
Winnebago | Illinois | Elevated | Charleston | South Carolina | Elevated | |
Allen | Indiana | Elevated | Greenville | South Carolina | Elevated | |
Lake | Indiana | Elevated | Richland | South Carolina | Moderate | |
Marion | Indiana | Elevated | Spartanburg | South Carolina | Elevated | |
St. Joseph | Indiana | Elevated | Davidson | Tennessee | Elevated | |
Polk | Iowa | Moderate | Hamilton | Tennessee | Elevated | |
Johnson | Kansas | Less | Knox | Tennessee | High | |
Sedgwick | Kansas | Elevated | Shelby | Tennessee | Elevated | |
Fayette | Kentucky | Moderate | Bell | Texas | Elevated | |
Jefferson | Kentucky | Elevated | Bexar | Texas | Elevated | |
Caddo Parish | Louisiana | High | Brazoria | Texas | Moderate | |
East Baton Rouge Parish | Louisiana | Elevated | Cameron | Texas | High | |
Jefferson Parish | Louisiana | Elevated | Collin | Texas | Nominal | |
Orleans Parish | Louisiana | High | Dallas | Texas | Moderate | |
Cumberland | Maine | Moderate | Denton | Texas | Less | |
Anne Arundel | Maryland | Less | El Paso | Texas | High | |
Baltimore | Maryland | Moderate | Fort Bend | Texas | Less | |
Baltimore City | Maryland | High | Galveston | Texas | Moderate | |
Howard | Maryland | Less | Harris | Texas | Moderate | |
Montgomery | Maryland | Less | Hidalgo | Texas | High | |
Prince George's | Maryland | Moderate | Jefferson | Texas | Elevated | |
Bristol | Massachusetts | Elevated | Lubbock | Texas | High | |
Essex | Massachusetts | Moderate | Montgomery | Texas | Moderate | |
Hampden | Massachusetts | Elevated | Nueces | Texas | Elevated | |
Middlesex | Massachusetts | Moderate | Tarrant | Texas | Moderate | |
Norfolk | Massachusetts | Moderate | Travis | Texas | Less | |
Plymouth | Massachusetts | Moderate | Williamson | Texas | Less | |
Suffolk | Massachusetts | Moderate | Davis | Utah | Moderate | |
Worcester | Massachusetts | Moderate | Salt Lake | Utah | Moderate | |
Genesee | Michigan | Elevated | Utah | Utah | Moderate | |
Ingham | Michigan | Moderate | Chesterfield | Virginia | Less | |
Kalamazoo | Michigan | Elevated | Fairfax | Virginia | Nominal | |
Kent | Michigan | Moderate | Henrico | Virginia | Moderate | |
Macomb | Michigan | Moderate | Norfolk City | Virginia | Elevated | |
Oakland | Michigan | Moderate | Prince William | Virginia | Nominal | |
Ottawa | Michigan | Moderate | Virginia Beach City | Virginia | Less | |
Washtenaw | Michigan | Less | Clark | Washington | Elevated | |
Wayne | Michigan | Elevated | King | Washington | Moderate | |
Anoka | Minnesota | Less | Kitsap | Washington | Moderate | |
Dakota | Minnesota | Less | Pierce | Washington | Elevated | |
Hennepin | Minnesota | Moderate | Snohomish | Washington | Moderate | |
Ramsey | Minnesota | Moderate | Spokane | Washington | High | |
Hinds | Mississippi | Elevated | Dane | Wisconsin | Moderate | |
Greene | Missouri | High | Milwaukee | Wisconsin | Elevated | |
Jackson | Missouri | Elevated | Waukesha | Wisconsin | Less |
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