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The Honolulu Advertiser
Updated at 4:54 a.m., Saturday, December 13, 2008

Survey: Honolulu 3rd safest of big U.S. cities

Advertiser Staff

HONOLULU, Hawaii — Honolulu is the third most secure place to live in the United States among large metropolitan areas, according to a survey undertaken by Farmers Insurance Group of Companies. It marks the fifth straight year Honolulu has been among the Top 20 most secure large cities in the U.S, a news release from the insurance company said.

The rankings are based on factors such as crime statistics, extreme weather, risk of natural disasters, housing depreciation, foreclosures, air quality, life expectancy and job loss numbers in 114 U.S. metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.

The Seattle–Bellevue–Everett, Wash., area encompassing Puget Sound is the most secure large metropolitan area to live in the U.S., according to the Farmers Insurance study. The Portland–Beaverton, Ore./Vancouver, Wash., area is second.

The most secure mid-size city (population between 150,000 – 500,000) is Olympia, Wash., while the most secure small town (population of 150,000 or fewer) is Corvallis, Ore.

Here is the list of the top 20 large metropolitan areas, in order, of Farmers Insurance's Most Secure Places to Live in the United States:

Large Metro Areas (500,000 or more residents)

1. Seattle–Bellevue–Everett, Wash.

2. Portland–Beaverton, Ore./Vancouver, Wash.

3. Honolulu, Hawaii

4. El Paso, Texas

5. Tacoma, Wash.

6. Harrisburg–Carlisle, Pa.

7. San Francisco–San Mateo–Redwood City, Calif.

8. Bethesda–Gaithersburg–Frederick, Md.

9. Salt Lake City, Utah

10. Pittsburgh, Pa.

11. McAllen–Edinburg–Mission, Texas

12. San Jose–Sunnyvale–Santa Clara, Calif.

13. Albuquerque, N.M.

14. Boise City–Nampa, Idaho

15. Austin–Round Rock, Texas

16. Scranton–Wilkes-Barre, Pa.

17. Nassau–Suffolk Counties, N.Y.

18. Portland–South Portland–Biddeford, Maine

19. Edison, N.J.

20. Bridgeport–Stamford–Norwalk, Conn.