Student Loan Debt Capitals

Ranging from a median $$22,784 to $27,122, these 30 cities are home to Millennials with the most student loan debt in the nation.

According to a LendingTree study, student loan debt accounts for 40 percent, the largest share, of Millennials' total credit and loan balances. Kali McFadden, a LendingTree senior research analyst, tells Business Insider, "People in expensive cities tend to earn higher paychecks, which means they may be making bigger student loan payments under an income-based repayment schedule, even if their monthly expenses are significantly higher than people who live elsewhere but earn less," which may be why Millennials in San Francisco and New York, both expensive coastal markets, did not make the list.

Researchers analyzed anonymized credit report data from My LendingTree to see where millennials with the most debt live. Researchers looked at debt balances, excluding mortgages, of people born between 1981 and 1996, and included people both with and without debt. The debt calculated included personal and student loans, auto, and credit card debt. My LendingTree currently has more than nine million active accounts.

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