Group ranks Phila. 13th in nation for charity

The City of Brotherly Love is moving up in rank when it comes to the quality of charities here - albeit slowly.

Charity Navigator, an independent nonprofit evaluator, ranked the Philadelphia area 13th among the best performing charities in the nation - based on financial health, accountability and transparency - up from 16th last year.

St. Louis topped the list. The Glen Rock, N.J.-based Charity Navigator said Philadelphia's better ranking was partly due to some other cities slipping, but also "better revenue growth among charities in Philadelphia," vice president and CFO Sandra Miniutti said.

Philadelphia charities' revenue grew 4.5 percent in the latest study of 2013 data, up from 1.3 percent the previous year. "That's really healthy," Miniutti added. "We're looking for nonprofits to keep up with the rate of inflation and not have to cut back on their services and programs."

HelpHOPELive of Radnor was its top-ranked local charity. A link to Charity Navigator's Philadelphia-area charity list is available at http://goo.gl/KmtjRW.

- Erin Arvedlund