MIAMI—What U.S. cities have the highest number of accounts in collections?
According to a new study from WalletHub, Laredo, Texas, comes in first.
Laredo residents have an average of 3.6 each as of Q2 2024. In addition, this average went up by nearly 4.2% from Q1 to Q2 2024, the 14th-highest percentage in the country.
“This is worrying as it shows that people are increasingly unable to pay their debts,” WalletHub said in releasing its findings.
In addition to having a lot of collection accounts, Laredo residents also owe an average of $1,615 on each account in collections, which is the 18th-highest average balance in the country, WalletHub reported. The average balance increased by around 11% between Q1 and Q2 2024, too, the seventh-highest percentage.
The Runner-Up
Corpus Christi, Texas, residents come in second with an average of 3.5 each as of Q2 2024, WalletHub said.
“While Corpus Christi has nearly as many collection accounts per person as Laredo, the good news is that Corpus Christi residents are increasing the number of collection accounts that they have at a slower rate,” the company said in its analysis. “The number of collection accounts per person went up by less than 1% between Q1 and Q2 2024, only the 64th-highest percentage among the 100 cities in our study.”
‘More of a Problem’
Corpus Christi residents have the 30th-highest average collection account balance in the country, at $1,513. The average balance increased by around 6.4% between Q1 and Q2 2024, the 14th-highest percentage.
“This shows that the city has more of a problem with paying off existing collection accounts than with letting new accounts fall into collections,” WalletHub said.