drowning in debt
Texas charges up top-10 rank in states dealing with the most debt, per report
Everything's bigger here — including the spending.
It's not too late to rein in that holiday spending, Texas. A new financial report has revealed Texas is the No. 9 state with the highest debt levels in the country.
The report by personal finance website CreditDonkey examined each state's average mortgage debt, student debt, automobile debt, and credit card debt. Rankings were determined based on which state had the highest amount of debt.
Texas was ranked so highly due to its rampant amount of auto loan debt, the most out of all 50 states. Over 100 million Texans have loans on their cars, which has racked up more than $1.5 trillion in auto loan debt. The average Texan's auto loan debt stands at $27,739.
Texans' higher-than-average credit card debt was also a major factor, according to the report. The average credit card debt amount adds up to $6,542.
Speaking of debt, it's worth noting that this report comes after a recent survey that found The Woodlands ranks No. 10 in the U.S. for holiday spending budgets. (No word as to how much of that holiday spending ends up as revolving credit balances.)
The average mortgage debt in the Lone Star State is $217,461, while the average student debt amounts to $33,354. In Houston, first time buyers need to earn 13.9 percent more than 2022 to afford that first home, per a recent report.
While Texas' level of debt is no laughing matter, residents can find some relief they're not living in California. Californians have the most debt in America, with the average mortgage debt at nearly $423,000 per household, and an average student loan debt of $37,384.
CreditDonkey Director of Research Anna Ge explained the "multifaceted story" of why debt in Texas (and overall in the United States) has skyrocketed over the years.
"The causes for the surge in debt are rooted in a confluence of factors – from the pursuit of higher education to home-ownership aspirations and the challenges of rising costs across the board," she said. "The ease of access to credit, while providing immediate relief, has contributed to a culture where spending can outpace income"
Population growth and consumerism are two other driving factors, according to Ge.
"There are also more deep-rooted issues that are causing such drastic increases in debt, from rising costs of essentials such as gas and groceries, to healthcare and living expenses (rent and bills), as costs continue to rise many Americans are being pushed to the edge and require relief that inevitably results in the building up of debt," Ge continued.
The top 10 states struggling with the most debt are:
- No. 1 – California
- No. 2 – Hawaii
- No. 3 – Maryland
- No. 4 – Alaska
- No. 5 – Colorado
- No. 6 – Washington
- No. 7 – Virginia
- No. 8 – Georgia
- No. 9 – Texas
- No. 10 – Nevada
