Are Minnesotans Good With Money? You Betcha!
Financial management is a big bugaboo for a lot of Americans.
In addition to the nation's staggering $1.35 trillion in credit card debt, studies show that less than half of Americans even have a budget at all.
As it turns out, financial management skills vary greatly from state to state. WalletHub recently dug in to the numbers to find out which states are the best at managing their money.
The study focused mainly on two categories: financial planning/habits and financial knowledge/education. The first category includes things like credit scores, savings accounts and share of adults paying only the minimum on their credit card balance.
The second category included subcategories like high school financial literacy, high school graduation rate and share of adults with at least a bachelor's degree.
“Too many Americans lack comprehensive financial literacy, which causes them to have lower credit scores, prevents them from getting credit with good interest rates and lowers the amount of wealth they build throughout their life, among other negative consequences," said WalletHub's Chip Lupo. "Because financial literacy is so essential, states should prioritize teaching it from a young age. It’s not surprising that the most financially literate states all require personal-finance education before students graduate from high school.”
Minnesota is actually at the top of the list when it comes to financial literacy, according to the WalletHub study.
The study found Minnesota's education system to be up to par by including financial education courses for students from K-12. At the same time, only 15% of adults in the state spend more money than they make.
Minnesotans boast the best credit score in the country at 751. Over 37% of Minnesotans say that they are confident in their ability to achieve their financial goals, which is the second-highest percentage in the entire country.
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