(NewsNation) — A new study has identified the most and least “financially responsible” cities in the United States.
The study by LendingTree looked at the 100 largest metro areas in the country to rank where it’s the easiest and hardest for people to spend within their means. It also looked at debt-to-income ratios, credit inquiries, maxed-out credit cards, spending on housing costs and low credit utilization rates.
Des Moines, Iowa, and San Jose, California, were tied as the most financially responsible. Des Moines was consistent throughout all metrics and was found to have the lowest spending on housing costs, with 18.9% of households there spending only 35% of their income on housing. San Jose had the lowest debt-to-income ratio at 51% and had the highest rate of cardholders with low credit utilization at 76.6%.
Madison, Wisconsin, ranked third overall for most financially responsible. The city had the lowest rate of cardholders with at least one maxed-out credit cards at 16.3%.
On the other end of the spectrum for financial responsibility, McAllen, Texas, was the least financially responsible metro area. McAllen has the highest average number of credit inquiries at 6.7, nearly 36% of cardholders have a maxed-out credit card, and the state has the lowest rate of cardholders with a utilization below 30%.
Financial experts suggest low earners living in a high-cost area should work toward lowering interest, saving while paying down debt and tracking spending.