Sussex edged out New Castle County as the most financially secure of the state’s three political subdivisions.
The ranking came from SmartAsset.
In coming up with the ranking, SmartAsset considered debt as a percent of income, bankruptcies per 1,000 people, poverty rates and unemployment rates its analysis.
Kent County trailed New Castle and Sussex by a wide margin.
New Castle has long been the state ’s wealthiest county. However, the closing of its two auto plants and downsizing at DuPont, AstraZeneca and other high-paying employers has hurt incomes.
Kent has experienced similar problems that have included sluggish to declining government employment at the State of Delaware and Dover Air Force.
Sussex has seen an influx of more affluent retirees, families and empty nesters, some of whom operate businesses or telecommute from a county away from the I-95 corridor. Growth has also brought gains in higher-paying medical and construction employment.
To calculate the Financial Health Index, the company weighted debt as a percent of income at 10 percent, bankruptcies 35 percent, poverty rates 45 percent, and unemployment rates 10 percent.
Click on the highlighted link for the study on the most financially healthy places in the U.S.
