Sorry Raeford friends, it seems that you – along with many other North Carolina cities – may not be so good at money management.
According to the latest survey from our friends at WalletHub.com, Raeford comes in next to last in the country for money management. Only the good folks in Willis, Texas might be worse at in fact, as Raeford came in ranked No. 2,571 on the list.
WalletHub ranked 2,572 U.S. cities on money management, based on 10 key indicators. Those included things like average credit scores, late mortgage payments, and debt-to-income ratios.
Raeford was done in on the rankings by exceptionally bad credit card debt-to-ratio rankings, at 7.75 percent.
But Fayetteville, don’t get too excited. We didn’t do much better here, coming in at No. 2,503 on the list, the third percentile. And Hope Mills, you’re not in the clear either, coming in at No. 2,546 on the list.
Among North Carolina cities, Cary came out best overall, ranked at No. 96 in the country, a whopping 2,475 spots better than Raeford at money management. We ranked all the North Carolina cities below.
“A survey of consumer financial literacy reflects a growing need for financial instruction in U.S. households. Only 57% of adults, for instance, give their knowledge of personal finance high marks, and 47% maintain a budget and keep an eye on their spending,” WalletHub said in their release. “Good money management skills are more important now than ever during the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Some experts think a lack of education at even the high school level contributes to some of this problem.
“Financial skills should be taught as a mandatory part of the high school curriculum,” said Dorris Perryman, Adjunct Associate Professor of Accounting at Bristol Community College. “Many students are working evenings, weekends, spring, and summer breaks. Financial skills will help students understand money management. Financial knowledge will help break the poverty cycle because students will garner a better understanding of how money, credit cards, insurance, and other tools work.”
Here’s where every North Carolina city ranks on the list, as well as the top cities in the United States, led by Scarsdale, New York and Cupertino, California (the home of Google):
No. 329 - Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill
87th percentile, median credit score of 758
No. 931 - Fuquay-Varina
Fuquay-Varina
64th percentile, median credit score of 736
No. 1208 - Hickory
Hickory, NC
53rd percentile, median credit score of 695
No. 1506 - Wilmington
Wilmington, NC
41st percentile, median credit score of 705
No. 1765 - Greensboro
Greensboro, NC
31st percentile, median credit score of 675
No. 2096 - Monroe
Monroe, NC
19th percentile, median credit score of 677
National No. 1 - Scarsdale, NY
Scarsdale, New York
99th percentile, median credit score of 768
National No. 6 - Princeton, NJ
Princeton, New Jersey
99th percentile, median credit score of 765
