Michigan was the only state to lose population in the past decade, accordin= g to census data, and its economy was hit harder than any other state=92s, = according to the Bloomberg Economic Evaluation of States index. As the stat= e declined, so did its municipalities: Flint, Benton Harbor, Pontiac and Ec= orse all have emergency managers, as do Detroit=92s schools.
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September unemployment was 20.6 percent, twice the state average, according= to the Michigan Department of Technology, Management and Budget. About 38 = percent of residents lived in poverty in 2010, including 54 percent of chil= dren under 18, according to Census figures. Median household income was $29= ,500 compared with $48,700 statewide, the data show. Twenty-three percent of housing units were vacant, compared with 10.3 perce= nt in 2000, according to the data. The median value of housing was $53,900,= compared with $123,000 statewide.Its population fell 25 percent to 714,000= since 2000, according to 2010 U.S. Census data that suggest tens of thousa= nds moved to suburbs. Nearly half of Detroit=92s adults, roughly 200,000, a= re functionally illiterate, according to the National Institute for Literac= y.
There is the possibility that other cities will face similar fate.