WalletHub has released its list of cities with the most student loan debt in the country, revealing which spot in Florida carries the worst debt statewide.
To determine these results, researchers divided the median student-loan balance by the media earnings of adults aged 25 and older with a bachelor’s degree in over 2,500 cities across the United States.
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According to the study, student loans make up the second-highest form of household debt after mortgages, totaling over $1.6 trillion. That’s approximately $38,000 per borrower.
“High balances combined with a payoff timeline that lasts into middle age force many graduates to significantly delay or forego other financial goals such as saving for retirement or buying a home,” the study reads. “Paying back student loans has also become even more difficult due to high inflation putting a strain on Americans’ finances.”
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After tallying up the figures, the Florida city with the worst ratio of student debt turned out to be Avon Park in Highlands County, which saw a median student debt of nearly $19,000.
When compared to the media earnings ($24,940), the ratio came out to over 76% — the fourth highest in the nation.
Coming in at No. 2 for the state was a city much closer to Central Florida: The Villages, where median debt was roughly 73% of median earnings for bachelor’s degree holders.
On the flip side, these five cities turned out to have the best student loan debt ratios in the state:
- Niceville — 20.44%
- Atlantic Beach — 20.62%
- Homosassa — 22.46%
- Orange Park — 22.58%
- Orange City — 22.72%
Meanwhile, the 50 Florida cities with the worst student loan debts are as follows:
| State Rank | City | Ratio* |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Avon Park | 76.03% |
| 2 | The Villages | 73.28% |
| 3 | Palmetto | 58.59% |
| 4 | Lady Lake | 56.25% |
| 5 | Sunny Isles Beach | 52.23% |
| 6 | Gainesville | 51.00% |
| 7 | Kissimmee | 50.93% |
| 8 | Sun City Center | 50.70% |
| 9 | Okeechobee | 50.22% |
| 10 | Mount Dora | 48.70% |
| 11 | Aventura | 48.15% |
| 12 | Inverness | 47.36% |
| 13 | Daytona Beach | 46.79% |
| 14 | Pinellas Park | 46.46% |
| 15 | Doral | 45.90% |
| 16 | Sebring | 45.88% |
| 17 | Maitland | 45.64% |
| 18 | Vero Beach | 45.35% |
| 19 | New Smyrna Beach | 45.32% |
| 20 | Oldsmar | 44.86% |
| 21 | Tallahassee | 44.42% |
| 22 | Palatka | 44.34% |
| 23 | Pembroke Pines | 44.33% |
| 24 | Dade City | 44.17% |
| 25 | Bradenton | 44.08% |
| 26 | Plantation | 43.90% |
| 27 | Miami Lakes | 43.73% |
| 28 | Miramar | 43.72% |
| 29 | North Fort Myers | 43.71% |
| 30 | Sunrise | 43.32% |
| 31 | North Miami Beach | 42.77% |
| 32 | Sebastian | 42.68% |
| 33 | Leesburg | 42.64% |
| 34 | Palm Bay | 42.62% |
| 35 | Casselberry | 42.43% |
| 36 | Zephyrhills | 42.29% |
| 37 | Clermont | 42.17% |
| 38 | Fort Pierce | 42.12% |
| 39 | Longwood | 41.72% |
| 40 | Hudson | 41.61% |
| 41 | New Port Richey | 41.54% |
| 42 | Ruskin | 41.41% |
| 43 | Palm Harbor | 41.24% |
| 44 | Holiday | 41.21% |
| 45 | Deerfield Beach | 41.19% |
| 46 | Davie | 41.13% |
| 47 | Sarasota | 40.91% |
| 48 | Bonita Springs | 40.75% |
| 49 | Winter Springs | 40.72% |
| 50 | Lake Worth Beach | 40.72% |
| 51 | Port Orange | 40.41% |
| 52 | Stuart | 40.39% |
| 53 | Margate | 40.36% |
| 54 | Port Charlotte | 40.18% |
| 55 | Altamonte Springs | 40.14% |
| 56 | Milton | 39.93% |
| 57 | Dunnellon | 39.57% |
| 58 | Melbourne | 39.56% |
| 59 | Lake Placid | 39.56% |
| 60 | Titusville | 39.39% |
| 61 | St. Cloud | 39.33% |
| 62 | Royal Palm Beach | 39.31% |
| 63 | Panama City | 39.06% |
| 64 | Ocala | 39.04% |
| 65 | Crawfordville | 38.87% |
| 66 | Spring Hill | 38.84% |
| 67 | Coconut Creek | 38.78% |
| 68 | Port St. Lucie | 38.71% |
| 69 | North Lauderdale | 38.53% |
| 70 | Lakeland | 38.50% |
| 71 | Lauderdale Lakes | 38.46% |
| 72 | Apopka | 38.37% |
| 73 | St. Petersburg | 38.30% |
| 74 | Tamarac | 38.26% |
| 75 | Oviedo | 38.03% |
| 76 | Brandon | 37.91% |
| 77 | Hallandale Beach | 37.91% |
| 78 | Homestead | 37.86% |
| 79 | Brooksville | 37.46% |
| 80 | Ocoee | 37.43% |
| 81 | Palm Coast | 37.22% |
| 82 | Key West | 37.08% |
| 83 | Sanford | 37.06% |
| 84 | Palm Beach Gardens | 36.69% |
| 85 | Orlando | 36.61% |
| 86 | Winter Haven | 36.58% |
| 87 | Cutler Bay | 36.50% |
| 88 | Boynton Beach | 36.25% |
| 89 | Oakland Park | 36.18% |
| 90 | Lauderhill | 36.10% |
| 91 | Cape Coral | 35.89% |
| 92 | Largo | 35.80% |
| 93 | Palmetto Bay | 35.78% |
| 94 | Hollywood | 35.72% |
| 95 | Bartow | 35.71% |
| 96 | Weston | 35.66% |
| 97 | Coral Springs | 35.58% |
| 98 | Temple Terrace | 35.56% |
| 99 | Ormond Beach | 35.49% |
| 100 | Riviera Beach | 35.42% |
* Calculated by dividing median student debt by median earnings of bachelor’s degree holders