These Florida cities among most debt-ridden in the US. Here’s why

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – LendingTree has released its list of the most “debt-ridden U.S. metros,” examining which major cities have the most nonmortgage debt according to our sister station WKMG in Orlando.

According to the study, residents across the largest U.S. metros hold an average nonmortgage debt of $37,827. More specifically, this total is made up of four types of debt:

• Auto loan debt, which is at an average of $12,437
• Student loan debt, which is at an average of $11,747
• Credit card debt, which is at an average of $7,890
• Personal loan debt, which is at an average of $3,703

That number may seem high, but LendingTree Chief Credit Analyst Matt Schulz said it’s about what he expects.

“We’ve seen auto loan debt spike in recent years due to sky-high interest rates and rising prices,” Schulz explained. “We’ve seen credit card debt jump in a big way in a reversal of the big paydown we saw during the darkest days of the pandemic. Meanwhile, student loan debt hasn’t changed nearly as much, and it’s actually down a bit from the peak we saw in 2023.”

Of the 50 metros examined in this list, LendingTree reports that Austin, Texas is the most debt-ridden thanks to its high growth in recent years.

However, four Florida cities managed to place within the top 15 on the list: Miami (No. 4), Orlando (No. 7), Tampa (No. 10), and Jacksonville (No.11).

Like Texas, Florida has seen huge swaths of people flocking to the state. While this helps bolster the state’s GDP and job growth, this population boom also means that the cost of living has risen similarly high.

“Florida is going to keep cruising at a higher altitude than the rest of the country,” Snaith predicted earlier this year. “That’s because the ‘twin engines’ of a robust labor market and population growth are propelling us forward.”

But the bulk of nonmortgage debt in these four Florida cities doesn’t stem from credit cards or personal loans; instead, the largest portion of this debt comes from auto loans.

“Some of this debt is likely due to an American obsession with the freedom of the open road — but some of it may be out of necessity...” the study states. “While a few of the densest metros in the U.S., like New York and Boston, are well-served by their transit systems, most are more dispersed, and everything from work to picking up the kids from soccer practice requires transportation autonomy.”

Metros with highest/lowest average auto loan debt (and the other debts they carry)

Jacksonville ranked 8th at $14,804, Miami ranked 4th at $15,977, Orlando ranked 5th at $15,595 and Tampa ranked 9th at $14,581

Meanwhile, the rest of LendingTree’s list is as follows: