2016 Best and Worst Places To Launch Your Career

OK, Mom and Dad -- and grandparents, too -- just how far are you going to have to travel to see the kids after they graduate from college?

Chances are the kids will move where the jobs are and where they have the best chance for a great start with the next chapter of life. SO just where might that me? The personal-finance website WalletHub conducted an in-depth analysis of 2016’s Best & Worst Cities to Start a Career which should give a pretty good clue. While a lot of Northwest eyes will be on Portland (65), Seattle (45), even Spokane (94) , none of those cities make the top 10 – nor do they make the bottom 10 either!  In fact, Tacoma outperforms them all coming in at No. 32!

Studies show employers plan to hire 11 percent more college grads in 2016 than in 2015, so to help new grads launch their careers in the right place, WalletHub’s analysts compared the relative strength of the 150 largest markets in the U.S. using 17 key metrics such as number of entry-level jobs, median starting salary and housing affordability.  Here’s what they found out.  Chances are slim you’ll have to go to Detroit for Thanksgiving!

Comparing the Best & Worst:

• Houston has the highest monthly median starting salary (adjusted for cost of living), $3,705, which is nearly three times higher than in Honolulu, the city with the lowest, $1,332.
• Gilbert, Ariz., has the highest median annual household income (adjusted for cost of living), $84,969, which is more than three times higher than in Cleveland the city with the lowest, $25,869.
• Austin, Texas, has the lowest unemployment rate, 2.8 percent, which is four times lower than in Fresno, Calif., the city with the highest, 11.4 percent.
• Jersey City, N.J., has the highest percentage of the population aged 25 to 34, 22.5 percent, which is slightly more than two times higher than in Cape Coral, Fla., the city with the lowest, 10.3 percent.
• Irvine, Calif., has the highest percentage of the population with at least a bachelor’s degree, 65.6 percent, which is nearly six times higher than in San Bernardino, Calif., the city with the lowest, 11.7 percent.
• Orlando, Fla., has the highest number of entry-level job openings per 100,000 working-age residents, 311.31, which is 39 times higher than in North Las Vegas, Nev., the city with the lowest, 7.99.

For the full report and to see where your city ranks, visit: https://wallethub.com/edu/best-worst-cities-to-start-a-career/3626/