Bethesda, Md., Ranked as Most Secure Metro Area in Farmers Insurance Study

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The Bethesda鈥揋aithersburg鈥揊rederick region in Maryland was ranked as the most secure large U.S. metro area in the latest study published by Farmers Insurance Group of Companies.

This annual study defines large metropolitan areas as regions with population of 500,000 or greater. The study of large metropolitan areas in the United States, compiled by researchers at Sperling’s BestPlaces, considered a number of criteria. They include economic stability, crime statistics, extreme weather, risk of natural disasters, housing depreciation, foreclosures, air quality, environmental hazards, life expectancy, motor vehicle fatalities, and employment numbers.

Farmers Insurance said this is the seventh consecutive year that the Bethesda area has earned the top 20 rating among large metro areas in the annual study, and it has been among the top 10 each year since 2007. The company said some of the key factors that helped the historical Maryland area earn its top spot in the latest study included its low unemployment and low personal crime rates, while its long life expectancy rate contributed to its top rating.

Several other Northeastern metropolitan regions also fared well in the study. Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania was ranked the third-most secure large metro area in the country. The Cambridge鈥揘ewton鈥揊ramingham metro region in Massachusetts came in fifth. The Portland鈥揝outh Portland鈥揃iddeford region in Maine was ranked as the fifteenth-most secure metro region in the country, while the Essex County in Massachusetts came in at sixteenth.

“Our most secure large metropolitan areas are islands of security in our challenging times,” said Bert Sperling, president of Sperling’s BestPlaces, the firm that compiled data for the study.

“Some have a stable economy due to their local colleges and seats of government, and some may be fortunate that their locale is not prone to hurricanes, tornadoes or earthquakes. Although each metropolitan area is different, they all possess a desirable combination of factors (jobs, low crime rates, housing, climate, health, reduced levels of natural disasters) that make these some of the best places to live in the United States.”

Here are the top 20 most secure large metropolitan areas, according to the latest Farmers Insurance study:

1. Bethesda鈥揋aithersburg鈥揊rederick, Md.

2. Grand Rapids鈥揥yoming, Mich.

3. Pittsburgh, Penn.

4. Austin鈥揜ound Rock, Texas

5. Cambridge鈥揘ewton鈥揊ramingham, Mass.

6. Omaha, Neb.鈥揅ouncil Bluffs, Iowa

7. San Jose鈥揝unnyvale鈥揝anta Clara, Calif.

8. San Francisco鈥揝an Mateo鈥揜edwood City, Calif.

9. Portland鈥揃eaverton, Ore.鈥揤ancouver, Wash.

10. Dallas鈥揚lano鈥揑rving, Texas

11. Boise City鈥揘ampa, Idaho