The Bluff City joins several Rust Belt and northeastern cities at the top of a new report of the most economically distressed communities in the nation. Rounding out the list are Milwaukee, Stockton, Philadelphia and Tucson, making Memphis the only city in the South — and the only city in the heart of the country — in the top 10.

According to the Economic Innovation Group's (EIG) new 2017 Distressed Communities Index (DCI), Memphis was the sixth most distressed area among the nation’s 100 largest cities, with 66.1 percent of residents living in a distressed ZIP code.

The DCI is a nationwide analysis and interactive tool for measuring the economic vitality of U.S. communities. The group's mission is to advance solutions that empower entrepreneurs and investors to forge a more dynamic economy.

To determine which communities are the most economically distressed, the report looks at the housing vacancy rate, the percent of those aged 25-64 not working, the percent of the population whose household income falls below the poverty rate, the median income compared to the state’s median income and the percent change in the number of business establishments, among other factors.

From 2011 to 2015, Memphis saw a 2.7 percent reduction in its number of businesses, while employment increased 1.3 percent. During the same time period, Shelby County had a .09 percent reduction in its number of businesses and a 2.9 percent increase in employment.

Shelby County was in the nation's top 15 most economically distressed counties, with 47.4 percent of residents living in a distressed ZIP code. Shelby County's "distress score" was 60.7. For comparison, Fayette County had a distress score of 22.6 and Tipton County had a distress score of 32.9. Desoto County had a distress score of only 2.8.