LendingTree analysis<\/a> of the 50 largest U.S. metropolitan areas, Houston ranks as the third most debt-ridden major metro in America, with residents carrying an average of $44,640 in non-mortgage debt. Only Austin ($45,920) and San Antonio ($44,812) ranked higher.<\/p>\nThe average non-mortgage debt across the nation\u2019s 50 largest metros is $37,827, meaning Houston residents carry nearly $7,000 more debt than the average resident of a major metro.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s driving Houston\u2019s debt?<\/p>\n
LendingTree found that auto loans account for the largest share of non-mortgage debt among many Americans, and Houston is no exception.<\/p>\n
The average Houston resident carries:<\/p>\n
$16,357 in auto loan debt<\/p>\n
$12,556 in student loan debt<\/p>\n
$8,583 in credit card debt<\/p>\n
$4,473 in personal loan debt<\/p>\n
Nearly 98% of Houston-area residents have some form of non-mortgage debt, according to the study.<\/p>\n
Researchers noted that Texas cities consistently rank among the nation\u2019s most debt-burdened metros, in part because residents often rely heavily on vehicles and frequently take on larger auto loans.<\/p>\n
What families can do if they\u2019re struggling<\/p>\n
Consumer advocates say people feeling overwhelmed by debt should act quickly rather than wait until payments become unmanageable.<\/p>\n
Financial experts recommend:<\/p>\n
Creating a detailed budget to identify where money is being spent.<\/p>\n
Contacting lenders and credit card companies about hardship programs or lower interest rates.<\/p>\n
Working with a nonprofit credit counseling agency to develop a debt repayment plan.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese firms will create a budget for you, put you on a path to recovery and help lower interest rates for you,\u201d KPRC 2 consumer reporter Bill Spencer said.<\/p>\n
Nonprofit credit counseling organizations can often help consumers consolidate payments, negotiate with creditors and develop long-term financial plans at little or no cost.<\/p>\n
Inflation continues to strain budgets<\/p>\n
The growing debt burden comes as Americans continue to feel the effects of inflation.<\/p>\n
Although inflation has cooled from its pandemic-era highs, many households are still paying significantly more for everyday necessities than they were just a few years ago. Experts say rising costs have forced some families to rely more heavily on credit cards and loans to cover expenses.<\/p>\n
Financial counselors say the earlier consumers seek help, the easier it is to regain control of their finances before debt spirals further out of reach.<\/p>\n
Copyright 2026 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Americans are carrying more debt than ever before, and new data shows Houston residents are among the most…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":700900,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[45835,28,303137,3055,101,303139,7095,303136,303138,303140],"class_list":["post-700899","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-economy","tag-auto-loan","tag-business","tag-credit-counseling-texas","tag-debt","tag-economy","tag-financial-advice-houston","tag-houston","tag-houston-debt","tag-inflation-and-debt","tag-texas-debt-statistics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/700899","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=700899"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/700899\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/700900"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=700899"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=700899"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=700899"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}