Los Alamos, N.M., tops best-savers list, report says

~ Cape Girardeau listed among top 500 communities.

ST. LOUIS -- Jim West figures he and his fellow residents of Los Alamos, N.M., are too busy biking, fishing and riding horses to spend much money.

Perhaps that's part of the reason the town of 18,500 residents ranks No. 1 in this year's A.G. Edwards "Nest Egg Index," an annual ranking of how the nation's cities and states put away money for safekeeping.

Los Alamos topped the list with a rating of 134.31 indexed to a national average of 100. Connecticut's Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk was second at 126.20, followed by last year's winner, San Jose, Calif., with a 125.93 rating.

It wasn't that San Jose dropped. A.G. Edwards expanded its examination this year to include towns with populations as small as 10,000 -- defined by the Census as "micropolitan" areas. Whereas the St. Louis-based brokerage firm looked at 318 communities in 2005 and ranked the top 200, it studied 934 this year and ranked the top 500.

Cape Girardeau reported in at 410 with a score of 96.85.

West, a 72-year-old retiree, has lived in Los Alamos for 40 years and serves on the council that runs both the city and county.

"This is a great place to live -- unless you like shopping," West said. "This is a community that is very fitness-oriented and outdoor sports-oriented -- hiking and biking and skiing and mountain climbing. People don't care to spend much time in malls."

The "Nest Egg Index" is based upon savings and investing habits and involved a dozen statistical factors ranging from participation in retirement savings plans to personal debt levels and home ownership. A.G. Edwards used consumer data compiled by the marketing information firm Claritas and a cost of living measure from the Council for Community and Economic Research.

High-ranking communities typically have strong housing markets and are big on retirement vehicles such as 401(k) or pension plans, A.G. Edwards said. And while the top-tier savers tend to have higher costs of living, residents still manage to limit debt.

"Although many people associate the presence of wealth with the economic opportunities often available in big cities, it is striking that three out of the 10 top-performing communities were micropolitan areas," said Sophie Beckmann, financial planning specialist for A.G. Edwards.

The index also looked at states and regions. The top-saving state was New Jersey, also the 2005 winner, which this year scored a 114.55. The rest of the top five included Connecticut (114.37), Minnesota (113.46), Maryland (112.28) and Massachusetts (111.77).

The bottom five were Alabama at 46th, followed by Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi.

Kansas ranked 22nd with a score of 102.80 and Missouri 24th with a score of 100.70.

Among regions, the Midwest and Northeast were cited as the best savers.

Los Alamos was tops in per capita household income and net worth, and second in use of 401(k), pension and other retirement plans.

Due in large part to the presence of the Los Alamos National Laboratory, 68 percent of workers hold managerial or professional positions, the highest concentration in the nation, according to a recent study by American City Business Journals.

West said he's far from rich, but has put away enough money to live comfortably in retirement, offering plenty of time for hunting and fishing, motorcycle tours and taking care of horses.

"The reason I've got something is because I've planned it that way," he said.

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On the Net:

www.agedwards.com

www.nesteggindex.com