WASHINGTON (AP) _ As the national economic meltdown takes its toll on local economies, some out-of-the-way states are enjoying unprecedented prosperity. Home prices in states like Wyoming, West Virginia and North Dakota continue to rise, wages are growing and unemployment is at record lows.



While at least 23 states and the District of Columbia scramble to cut their spending, these states and others like them are enjoying economic boom times.



These geographically and socially disparate states share two key characteristics, experts and officials said. They are isolated from major urban centers — and thus from the housing bust and loss of financial industry jobs that have hobbled other economies. And they benefit from an abundance of in-demand commodities such as coal, natural gas and grain, whose prices remain at historically high levels despite recent drops sparked by fears of a global recession.