Laramie College Debt Ratio Ranks High Nationally
National college debt has reached an all-time high in 2022, breaking a staggering $1.61 trillion milestone. Small wonder college-bound individuals are looking for inexpensive education options. The University of Wyoming has some of the lowest tuition rates in the country. Naturally, you might assume that means Wyoming residents have lower college debt than most other states. But, according to a new survey by WalletHub, that is not the case.
WalletHub surveyed the debt to income ratio of Wyoming residents and found that when compared to the average income of a college graduate in Wyoming, Laramie residents suffer from a higher than average debt ratio. The survey compiled its results using loan data from TransUnion compared to the average income of Bachelor's Degree students 25 years and older.
Laramie's Debt-to-Income Ratio
The survey indicated that the average debt to income ratio for Laramie residents sat at about 58.64% due to an average income of $36,131 compared to college debt of about $21,188. The 58.64% ratio puts Laramie, WY, in the fifth percentile for burdensome debt ratio in the country.
Conversely, our neighbor Cheyenne has a much lower debt-to-income ratio of 34.09%, with a median earning income sitting at about $53,573 a year compared to $18,265 worth of college debt.
Keep in mind that the survey doesn't examine what university the students received their degree from, so if Wyoming residents went out of state, higher out-of-state tuition may play a role in their college debt-to-income ratio.
Laramie and Cheyenne College Debt Ratio Compared to the U.S.
How do Laramie and Cheyenne stack up against other cities in the country?
Interestingly, California has some of the lowest college debt-to-income ratios in the country in Sunnyvale, which had a stunningly low level of debt at 16.13%, and Coachella (yes, that Coachella) at 12.66%. On the other end of the spectrum, Selma, AL, had the worst ratio at 84.33%, followed closely by Ypsilanti, MI, at 83.64%.
Closest to Laramie's rating is Lebanon, PA, with a 58.65% college debt to income ratio. The city closest to Cheyenne's rating is Cliffside Park, NJ, with a 34.09% ratio.
You can check out the entire report from WalletHub by clicking here.