Top 10 dumbest states for financial literacy
May 22, 2014 by Dan Berman
Some people have a knack for financial planning and some don’t. It seems to be the same with states, a fact of life that will likely leave financial advisors in some areas of the nation with a lot more hand-holding to do with potential clients.
People in these states are more likely to have revolving credit card debt, take loans from places like high-interest payday lenders, and spend more than they earn, according to WalletHub.
WalletHub, a financial decision-making site, noted that overall there is a huge financial literacy problem in the U.S. The site assessed states based on two categories: knowledge and education; and planning and daily habits.
The site looked at the high school dropout rate, results of a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority literacy survey and the percentage of adults with a bachelor’s degree, among other measures, to rate states in the first category. The second category included looking at the percentage of people who spend more than they earn, how many have a rainy-day fund and how many pay only the minimum payment on their credit cards, among other measures.
Here, then, are the 10 Dumbest States for Financial Literacy for 2014, according to WalletHub:
Literacy: 46th out of 51
Behavior: 35th out of 51
Literacy: 38
Behavior: 41
Literacy: 44
Behavior: 38
Literacy: 43
Behavior: 39
Literacy: 48
Behavior: 40
Literacy: 49
Behavior: 37
Literacy: 40
Behavior: 49
Literacy: 41
Behavior: 50
Literacy: 50
Behavior: 48
Literacy: 51
Behavior: 51