The Cities Where Millennials Owe The Most Debt, Mapped
Despite the cost of living, the most expensive cities in the US aren't actually the cities where millennials are carrying the most non-mortgage debt.
According to a report from loan broker LendingTree, the 10 cities where millennials are saddled with the most debt are concentrated in the south. Millennials from San Antonio have the highest median debt — $27,122 to be exact — and millennials from Pittsburgh and Austin, Texas are following closely behind with median balances of $26,403 and $26,164:
According to the report, student loans make up the bulk of millennial debt, accounting for 40% of total credit and loan balances. Auto loans are the second-biggest debt burden for millennials and occupy, on average, a third of total debt balances.
Somewhat surprisingly, cities known for their high living expenses, such as New York City and Los Angeles are actually among the top 10 places where millennials carry the least amount of debt:
There might not be much reason for the residents of these cities to rejoice, however. Kali McFadden, the senior research analyst of the LendingTree study, has pointed out that low debt burdens might indicate that people living in these cities are too poor to afford to take out debt or go to college. "It's worth noting that low debt burdens aren't necessarily a good thing when thinking about the economic vibrancy of a community," she says.
