CardRatings.com Survey Identifies the 10 Best and Worst States for Credit Conditions
Foster City, CA (PRWEB) July 29, 2013 -- A CardRatings.com study evaluated five important credit conditions in each of the 50 states and determined that while significant progress has occurred in some areas, other parts of the country appear firmly rooted at the bottom of the ranking.
North Dakota again takes top honors in this year’s study, boasting high employment and low foreclosure activity. Nevada, with the highest unemployment rate and worst average credit rating in the nation, secured its spot as the worst state for credit conditions.
This information may be relevant to both individuals and businesses considering where to locate. “Once financial problems become common in an area, they have a way of sucking more and more people in,” says Richard Barrington, CFA, senior financial analyst at MoneyRates.com and CardRatings.com contributor. “People who don’t pay their bills can cause local businesses to go under; that leads to more unemployment, which means more people who can’t pay their bills, and so on.”
According to CardRatings.com’s report, the 10 best states for credit conditions are:
1. North Dakota
2. South Dakota
3. Vermont
4. Montana
5. Iowa
6. Nebraska
7. Hawaii
8. Minnesota
9. Wyoming
10. New Hampshire
The 10 worst states for credit conditions according to the survey are:
1. Nevada
2. Georgia
3. (tie) Indiana
3. (tie) Tennessee
5. Florida
6. Alabama
7. Illinois
8. Mississippi
9. Arizona
10. Arkansas
“While household finances are very much a function of individual decisions, people and businesses need to know what the conditions surrounding them are like as well,” says Barrington. “The CardRatings.com study allows people to know what they are getting into when they relocate, for better or worse. It also may let people in some areas know that things aren’t as bad in the rest of the country as they are locally. That’s information people can use to make better decisions about where they want to live, work, and do business. It also may encourage leaders of some states to do more to educate people about the responsible use of credit, and provide guidance on how people can work their way out of problems.”
Americans have a chronic problem with debt. Consumer credit outstanding recently hit an all-time high of $2.82 trillion, according to the Federal Reserve. That’s an average of more than $12,000 for every adult in the United States, but the burden falls more heavily on some people than others, depending on income, spending habits – and location.
See the full article about the best states at The 10 best and worst states for credit conditions.
See the full list at The 10 best and worst states for credit conditions: The full list.
Methodology
To determine state rankings, CardRatings.com analyzed indicators directly related to individual credit usage and repayment behavior as well as broad economic health indicators. The five categories analyzed were unemployment (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2012), personal bankruptcy rates (American Bankruptcy Institute), average credit score(Experian National Score Index), credit card delinquency rates(TransUnion) and home foreclosure rates (RealtyTrac). Tied total scores were resolved based on which state in the tie ranked highest in the most categories, and lowest in the fewest.
About CardRatings.com
CardRatings.com is the leading comprehensive free source for comparing credit card offers and has been educating consumers on credit cards since 1998. The site regularly reports on consumer credit and debt issues and publishes editor and consumer reviews of balance transfer cards, student credit cards, gas credit cards and more. These resources allow consumers to compare and identify the credit cards best suited to their needs, get the best rates available and effectively lower their debt. The site was recently ranked the No. 1 credit card comparison site in Bing Editor's Picks. CardRatings.com is owned and operated by QuinStreet, Inc. (NASDAQ: QNST), one of the largest Internet marketing and media companies in the world. QuinStreet is committed to providing consumers and businesses with the information they need to research, find and select the products, services and brands that best meet their needs. The company is a leader in visitor-friendly marketing practices. For more information, please visit QuinStreet.com.
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Press Contact:
Andrew Heilman
775-784-3842
pr(at)cardratings(dot)com
Andrew Heilman, CardRatings.com, http://www.cardratings.com/, 775-784-3842, [email protected]
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