Sun Belt highs, Rust Belt lows
Personal finance website WalletHub.com evaluated average credit scores for residents within 2,570 U.S. towns and cities — and created a list of the municipalities with the best and worst collective credit. CNBC.com presents the top five and bottom five finishers in the following slides.
According to credit reporting agency Experian, the average U.S. credit score is 687. A cursory, general glance at the findings seems to show that populations with the best credit tend to be in Sun Belt meccas — where mostly retirees reside — while those with the worst credit appear to be Rust Belt towns in the East, with larger-than-average minority populations.
Scroll through to discover where America's most financially responsible consumers are living.
— By CNBC's Kenneth Kiesnoski
Posted 22 January 2016
Best Credit, No. 5: Sun City Center, Florida
Average Credit Score: 753
Source: WalletHub.com
Best Credit, No. 4: Los Altos, California
Average Credit Score: 754
Source: WalletHub.com
Best Credit, No. 3: Saratoga, California
Average Credit Score: 756
Source: WalletHub.com
Best Credit, No. 2: Sun City West, Arizona
Average Credit Score: 758
Source: WalletHub.com
Best Credit, No. 1: The Villages, Florida
Average Credit Score: 780
Source: WalletHub.com
Worst Credit, No. 5: College Park, Georgia
Average Credit Score: 583
Source: WalletHub.com
Worst Credit, No. 4: Forest Park, Georgia
Average Credit Score: 580
Source: WalletHub.com
Worst Credit, No. 3: Harvey, Illinois
Average Credit Score: 574
Source: WalletHub.com
Worst Credit, No. 2: East St. Louis, Illinois
Average Credit Score: 571
Source: WalletHub.com
Worst Credit, No. 1: Camden, New Jersey
Average Credit Score: 566
Source: WalletHub.com