CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU | JUNE 2023
Consumer Finances in
Rural Areas of the
Southern Region
Data Point
Office of Research
This data point is part of an occasional series of publications from the Consumer
Financial Protection Bureau’s Office of Research. These publications are intended
to further the CFPB’s objective of providing an evidence-based perspective on
consumer financial markets, consumer behavior, and regulations to inform the
public discourse. See 12 U.S.C. §5493(d).
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 1
Table of contents
Table of contents ......................................................................................................... 2
Executive Summary ....................................................................................................3
1. Demographic and Economic Profile of the Rural Southern Region .................6
2. Consumer Finance Profiles ...............................................................................10
2.1 Credit Cards.................................................................................................. 12
2.2 Auto Loans ....................................................................................................15
2.3 Home Loans ................................................................................................. 18
2.4 Student Loans .............................................................................................. 21
3. Consumer Distress and Delinquencies ............................................................23
3.1 Medical Collections ...................................................................................... 23
3.2 Consumer Delinquencies ............................................................................. 25
4. Conclusion ..........................................................................................................28
Appendix A: Auto Originations in Majority-Minority Census Tracts ................29
Appendix B: State-Level Analysis .......................................................................30
Alabama .................................................................................................................. 30
Arkansas ................................................................................................................. 34
Georgia ...................................................................................................................38
Louisiana ................................................................................................................42
Mississippi .............................................................................................................. 46
North Carolina ........................................................................................................50
South Carolina ........................................................................................................ 54
Tennessee ...............................................................................................................58
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 2
Executive Summary
This report is the second in a series profiling the finances of consumers in rural communities.
1
It
takes a broad look at consumer financial profiles in the southern region of the U.S. compared to
other geographies, including credit scores, financial distress, medical debt, and other debt
categories. Nearly 48 million people live in the southern region examined in this report, which
includes Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina,
and Tennessee.
2
Twenty-three percent of consumers in the southern region live in rural counties
and 15 percent live in Persistent Poverty Counties (PPCs), about double the national rural and
PPC shares of 14 percent and 7 percent respectively. This report is intended to provide a starting
point in better understanding the financial situations, needs and challenges of consumers in
rural areas in the southern region. For an in-depth look at issues related to banking and credit
access in both rural and non-rural areas in the southern region, see the CFPB’s report on
Banking and Credit Access in the Southern Region of the U.S.
3
Many consumers in the region’s rural areas may face challenges in the consumer financial
marketplace. Like rural consumers in other areas, rural southerners are older and earn less than
non-rural consumers on average.
4
Consumers in the southern region’s rural areas also face
distinct challenges. They are more likely to have a subprime credit score and tend to have less
digital and physical access to financial service providers than other rural consumers. This can
make it more difficult and expensive to get credit. These challenges may reflect in part persistent
correlations between race and economic outcomes.
5
Twenty-four percent of rural southerners in
this region are Black, for example, compared to 3 percent of Americans in other rural areas.
1
The first report in the series is on rural Appalachia. See Liu, Luce, Orevba, Sebastian, and Shupe, “Consumer
Finances in Rural Appalachia,” (September 2022), available at
https://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/documents/cfpb_consumer-finances-in-rural-appalachia_report_2022-09.pdf
2
These are a subset of the states in, for example, the Census Bureau’s South Region.
3
CFPB, “Banking and Credit Access in the Southern Region of the U.S.,” (June 2023).
4
For brevity, we refer to consumers in the eight-state southern region examined in this report as “southerners” and
those in rural areas in the region as “rural southerners”
5
See, for example, Bynum “Testimony of William J. Bynum, Hope Enterprise Corporation / Hope Credit Union /
Hope Policy Institute before the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs,” (April
2021) available at https://www.banking.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Bynum%20Testimony%204-20-21.pdf. For a
recent academic paper on these issues, see Feigenbaum, Lee, and Mezzanotti. "Capital Destruction and Economic
Growth: The Effects of Sherman's March, 1850–1920." (October 2022) available at
https://doi.org/10.1257/app.20200397
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 3
Key Findings
Section 2 summarizes how rural southerners and rural southerners living in Persistent Poverty
Counties fare across consumer financial products. Key findings include:
Sixty-seven percent of rural southerners have a credit card, compared to 75 percent in
rural areas outside the southern region and 80 percent nationwide. Rural southerners
who do have credit cards have higher utilization rates than consumers elsewhere. The
average consumer in the rural southern region has a balance of 38 percent of their credit
limit, compared to a national average of 31 percent.
Rural southerners and rural southerners living in Persistent Poverty Counties are as
likely to have an auto loan as the national average (42 percent), slightly less than the
average for rural counties outside the southern region (45 percent). However, two-year
delinquency rates in the rural southern region (16 percent) and rural southern Persistent
Poverty Counties (20 percent) are higher than the national average (11 percent) and in
rural areas outside the southern region (10 percent).
6
Twenty-three percent of rural southerners have an outstanding mortgage, lower than the
average for rural areas outside the southern region (28 percent). Seven percent of
mortgages in the rural southern region are home-only secured manufactured home
loans, compared to 3 percent in other rural areas and 1 percent nationally.
The median remaining balance for rural southerners with student loans ($17,499) is
similar to the median for rural consumers outside the southern region ($17,231) and
lower than the national median ($20,286). However, median scheduled monthly
payments are lower in the rural southern region. The median rural southerner has a
scheduled monthly payment of $157, compared to $169 in other rural areas and a
national average of $192.
Rural southerners who apply for credit are less likely to obtain it and take it out than the
national average, even when comparing across groups with similar credit scores. For
example, the share of credit card applications that are eventually originated in the rural
south is 4 percentage points lower than the national average for consumers with both
subprime and super-prime credit scores.
6
Delinquency rates are the share of consumers with at least one 60+ day delinquency, charge-off, or collection in a
given category during the 24 months between March 2020 and April 2022.
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 4
Across credit products, rural southerners tend to pay higher interest rates on average. In
rural parts of the southern region, the average interest rate on a mortgage was 3.51
percent in 2021, compared to 3.13 percent nationally. For credit cards, the median
interest rate in the region’s rural areas is 18.99 percent, compared to 17.74 percent in
other rural areas and 17.90 percent nationwide.
In Section 3, this report further examines consumer distress in medical collections and other
markets in the rural southern region, compared to other geographic areas, with distress
measured as the two-year delinquency rate. Key findings include:
Rural southerners are more likely to have medical collections on their credit report (28
percent) than consumers elsewhere (17 percent). The prevalence of reported medical
collections varies widely among states in the southern region; 34 percent of rural South
Carolinians have a medical debt collection tradeline, over 41 percent more than the share
of rural consumers with a medical collection in Mississippi (24 percent).
Nationwide consumer reporting agencies have recently changed their reporting practices
to remove medical collections that are paid or under $500. Rural southerners are more
likely to have at least one medical collection eligible for removal (20 percent) than rural
non-southerners (15 percent) or the national average (12 percent).
Medical collections are the most common type of delinquency in the rural southern
region, followed by student loans (21 percent) and credit cards (18 percent). Rural
southerners with medical collections are much more likely to have a delinquency on
other types of debt. For example, 16 percent of rural southerners with an auto loan were
at least 60 days delinquent at some point over a two-year period. For those with medical
collections, the auto loan delinquency rate more than doubles, to 33 percent.
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 5
1. Demographic and Economic
Profile of the Rural Southern
Region
This report examines the following southern states: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana,
Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.
7
These states are home to 48
million people and share a number of demographic characteristics. The region is
disproportionately rural, with 23 percent living in a rural county compared to 14 percent of the
population nationwide.
This region is also rich in its diversity, with a mix of race, age, and incomes, across both rural
and non-rural communities. This region has a large rural Black population. Nearly a quarter of
rural southerners are Black, and 70 percent of the national rural Black population resides in the
eight states covered by this report. Although the share of the population born outside the United
States living in the South (7 percent) is lower than the national average (14 percent), over 3
million immigrants live in the region. While the region’s rural areas have a substantial
population of older residents, 21 percent rural southerners are between 18 and 34 years old.
Understanding these variations within the region, and how they compare to elsewhere,
contributes to understanding different experiences people may have in accessing financial
services.
Nearly half (48 percent) of the nation’s Persistent Poverty Counties, in which poverty rates have
been 20 percent or more for at least 30 years, are in the southern region (shown in Figure 1.)
More than seven million people live in southern Persistent Poverty Counties. Following the
national pattern, most southern Persistent Poverty Counties are also rural (187 out of 240), and
these rural Persistent Poverty Counties include roughly four million people.
7
For brevity, we refer to consumers in the eight-state southern region examined in this report as “southerners” and
those in rural areas in the region as “rural southerners.”
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 6
FIGURE 1: MAP OF SOUTHERN COUNTIES
Note: The southern region includes Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South
Carolina, and Tennessee. PPC stands for persistent poverty county. Source: Rural and urban status definitions are
from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural-Urban Commuting Area Codes. PPC definitions stem from
the Economic Development Administration (EDA).
Table 1 below details selected characteristics for rural Persistent Poverty Counties and rural
areas as a whole in the southern region and compares these to other rural areas outside of the
region and to the national average. There are only 4.0 bank or credit union branches per 10,000
residents in the rural south, well below the 6.3 branches per 10,000 people in non-southern
rural areas.
8
Furthermore, just 69 percent of households in rural parts of the southern region
have access to broadband, compared to 83 percent of households nationally. The CFPB’s report
on banking and credit access in the South discusses how these factors may impact banking
access and credit access in the region.
9
8
Branches per 10,000 people is a common metric for measuring access to financial services, but may not capture
other important aspects of accessibility, such as the distance consumers must travel to visit a branch. Consumers in
sparsely populated rural counties with relatively high branches per capita may lack ready access to banking services
due to long or inconvenient travel times.
9
CFPB, “Banking and Credit Access in the Southern Region of the U.S.,” (June 2023).
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 7
TABLE 1: REGIONAL CHARACTERISTICS
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 8
Rural
PPCs in
southern
region
Rural
southern
region
Rural
non-
southern
region
Non-
rural
southern
region
Southern
region
Nationwide
Median
household
income
$36,827
$42,021
$52,028
$58,200
$54,527
$65,770
Percent age
18-34
22
21 21
24
23 23
Percent age
60+
24
25
26
21
22
22
High school
graduation rate
(percent)
82
83 88
89
88 90
Percent with at
least some
college
44
47
52
61
58
62
Percent with a
post-secondary
degree
22
24 29
37
34 39
Percent Black 41 24 3 26 3 12
Percent
Hispanic
4 5 10 8 10 18
Percent White 52 67 81 61 81 61
Percent Asian 1 1 1 3 1 5
Percent
American
Indian or
Alaska Native
2 1 2 0 2 1
Percent
foreign-born
2 3 4 8 7 14
Percent
speaking a
language other
than English at
home
5 5
10
11 9
22
Percent of
households
with broadband
access
64
69 76
81
78 83
Bank/CU
branches per
10,000
residents
4.3 4.0 6.3 3.0 3.6 5.0
Rural Rural Non-
Rural
PPCs in non- rural Southern
southern Nationwide
southern southern southern region
region
region region region
Percent of
owner-occupied 67 70 73 67 67 66
housing
Number of
counties
187 399 1,576 289 688 3,142
Note: The southern region includes Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South
Carolina, and Tennessee. PPC stands for persistent poverty county. Source: 2019 5-year American Community Survey
(ACS) county-level data. Sample size refers to the number of counties. Bank branch data is derived from CFPB
analysis of Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council, National Information Center (December 2021),
National Credit Union Administration, Credit Union and Corporate Call Report Data, Quarterly Data (December
2021), and Census Bureau’s Annual Population Estimates (December 2020).
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 9
2. Consumer Finance Profiles
This section compares credit and debt portfolios of rural southerners with 1) the national
average and 2) other rural consumers in other parts of the U.S. For example, we contrast the
prevalence of and typical balances on credit cards, auto loans, mortgages, and student loans
across groups of consumers to illuminate how the financial situations of rural southerners
compare to and differ from those for consumers elsewhere. Moreover, we show these measures
for Persistent Poverty Counties (PPCs) within the rural southern region to highlight consumer
finance profiles of individuals in counties with persistently lower incomes.
10
We draw on the
CFPB’s Consumer Credit Panel (CCP), a comprehensive, national, 1-in-48 sample of de-
identified credit records maintained by one of the three nationwide consumer reporting agencies
(NCRAs). In doing so, we consider all open credit tradelines of consumers who appear in the
CCP sample at least once between the first quarter of 2020 and the first quarter of 2022.
11
For
Table 2 and subsequent tables, the sample size of unique consumer-level observations is as
follows: 64,776 in rural Persistent Poverty Counties in the southern region, 181,899 in the rural
southern region, 584,789 in non-southern region rural areas, and 5,734,997 for the national
average.
Table 2 shows the share of consumers in each region with an average credit score (over the
2020–2022 period) in each credit score category.
12
Compared with all consumers nationally, a
larger share of rural southerners have a deep subprime or subprime credit score (37 percent
compared to 26 percent), and a smaller share has a prime or super-prime score (49 percent
compared to 63 percent). These differences are more pronounced in rural Persistent Poverty
Counties in the southern region, where 42 percent of consumers have a deep subprime or
subprime credit score and only 43 percent have prime or super-prime credit scores. Likewise, as
shown in Table 3, among majority-minority census tracts in the region, there are differences
10
A Persistent Poverty County (PPC) is defined as any county or county equivalent that has had 20 percent or more of
its population living in poverty over the last 30 years, as measured by the decennial census.
11
For the purposes of this analysis, consumers in the panel without a census tract and consumers who reside in U.S.
territories (American Samoa, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam) were excluded from the sample. The time
period is chosen for comparability with the previous report on Consumer Finances in Rural Appalachia and includes
the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and related emergency financial support efforts.
12
Credit scores are designed to help lenders assess potential borrowers’ credit risk. However, they may not always
accurately reflect an individual consumer’s likelihood to repay. For example, studies have found that a substantial
minority of consumers have errors on their credit reports with the three nationwide consumer reporting agencies
(CRAs), including errors substantial enough to meaningfully affect consumers’ credit scores. From October 2021 to
September 2022, the CFPB received nearly one million credit or consumer reporting complaints. The CFPB sent more
than 565,000 credit or consumer reporting complaints to companies for response. See CFPB, “Annual Report of
Credit and Consumer Reporting Complaints” (January 2023) available at https://www.consumerfinance.gov/data-
research/research-reports/annual-report-consumer-credit-reporting-complaints-analysis-of-complaint-responses-
equifax-experian-transunion-2022/
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 10
between rural and non-rural areas. Low credit scores may hinder access to low-interest credit
products and increase the likelihood that a consumer uses higher-interest alternative financial
services such as payday, pawn, or auto title loans.
13
TABLE 2: PERCENT OF CONSUMERS IN EACH CREDIT SCORE GROUP IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN
REGION AND NATIONWIDE
Credit Score Group
Rural
PPCs in
southern
region
Rural
southern
region
Rural
non-
southern
region
Southern
Region
Nationwide
Deep Subprime 5 4 2 3 2
Subprime 37 32 22 28 22
Near Prime 15 14 12 13 12
Prime 28 31 35 34 37
Super-Prime 15 19 28 22 26
Note: Credit score categories are defined as: deep subprime (credit scores below 499), subprime (credit scores of 500-
599), near prime (credit scores of 600-659), prime (credit scores of 660-779) and super-prime (credit scores of 780 or
above). The southern region includes Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South
Carolina, and Tennessee. PPC stands for persistent poverty county. Source: CFPB CCP 2020–2022.
TABLE 3: PERCENT OF CONSUMERS IN EACH CREDIT SCORE GROUP IN MAJORITY-MINORITY
CENSUS TRACTS FOR SOUTHERN REGION AND NATIONWIDE
Rural Non-rural Non-
Credit Score Group
southern
majority-
southern
majority-
rural
southern
Southern
region
Nationwide
minority minority region
Deep Subprime 5 4 3 3 2
Subprime 40 32 27 28 22
Near Prime 16 14 13 13 12
Prime 26 33 34 34 37
Super-Prime 14 18 22 22 26
Note: Credit score categories are defined as: deep subprime (credit scores below 499), subprime (credit scores of 500-
599), near prime (credit scores of 600-659), prime (credit scores of 660-779) and super-prime (credit scores of 780 or
above). The southern region includes Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South
Carolina, and Tennessee. Source: CFPB CCP 2020–2022.
13
See for example Fulford and Shupe, “Consumer use of payday, auto title, and pawn loans: Insights from the Making
Ends Meet Survey” (May 2021) available at: https://www.consumerfinance.gov/data-
research/researchreports/consumer-use-of-payday-auto-title-and-pawn-loans-insights-making-ends-meet-survey/.
Data regarding use of payday, auto title and pawn loan usage stem from the Making Ends Meet survey. The CCP does
not contain this information.
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 11
2.1 Credit Cards
Rural southerners are less likely than consumers nationally to have a general-purpose credit
card.
14
As shown in Table 4, only 67 percent of rural southerners, and 62 percent of rural
southerners living in Persistent Poverty Counties, have an open credit card, compared to 80
percent of consumers nationally. Rural southerners who do have credit cards typically have
lower balances. The median credit card balance among consumers in the rural south is 17
percent lower than the median for consumers nationwide, or $1,000 compared to $1,207.
The lower credit card balances observed in the rural south do not necessarily indicate lower debt
burdens. Average credit card utilization rates, defined as the total balance amount on a
consumer’s credit cards divided by their total credit limit, are notably higher in the region, at 38
percent in the rural south and 42 percent in rural southern Persistent Poverty Counties
compared to 31 percent nationwide. High utilization rates are one measure of potential financial
distress, and utilization rates above 30 percent may adversely impact credit scores.
15
Higher
utilization rates mean consumers have less credit available in case of an emergency or
unexpected expense.
TABLE 4: CREDIT CARD USAGE, IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION AND NATIONWIDE
Rural Rural
Rural
PPCs in non-
southern Nationwide
southern southern
region
region region
Percent with credit card 62 67 75 80
Median balance on credit cards $890 $1,000 $1,121 $1,207
Mean utilization rate on credit cards 42 38 32 31
Percent with at least one credit card
delinquency over two-year period
21 18 13 14
Note: Median balance exclude accounts with $0 balances. The southern region includes Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia,
Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. PPC stands for persistent poverty county.
Source: CFPB CCP 2020–2022.
A more direct sign of financial distress is inability to make required payments on debt, or
delinquency. Eighteen percent of rural southerners were severely delinquent on one or more
credit cards between March 2020 and April 2022, four percentage points higher than the
national average. In rural southern Persistent Poverty Counties, the credit card delinquency rate
is 21 percent. Despite lower median balances, high utilization rates and high delinquency rates
14
In this report, we count authorized users as having a general purpose credit card.
15
See, e.g. Experian, “What is a Credit Utilization Rate?”, available at https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-
experian/credit-education/score-basics/credit-utilization-rate/. Accessed March 1, 2023
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 12
suggest that, on average, the burden of credit card debt is higher among rural southerners than
nationally.
Both perceived creditworthiness and general credit market conditions affect consumers’ ability
to access a credit card when they wish to borrow. The CCP allows us to measure the likelihood
that a consumer receives a credit card or a higher limit when they apply.
16
Figure 2 displays the
percent of credit card applications originated for consumers living in the rural south compared
to the national average. Because the likelihood of successful origination is highly dependent on
credit score, we show origination rates for the five standard credit score categories and for
unscored consumers. This controls, in part, for average differences in credit scores between
regions.
Analysis of data on credit card accounts (not shown) reveals that rural southerners who get
credit cards pay higher interest rates on average. Median interest rates on credit card accounts
in rural southern Persistent Poverty Counties (19.99 percent) are higher than in the rural
southern region as a whole (18.99 percent) or the national average (17.90 percent.) Consumers
generally pay interest on their credit card balances only if they do not pay the balance in full
each month. Credit card accounts that carry a balance from month to month are called revolving
accounts. Credit card accounts are also much more likely to be revolving in the rural south (64.5
percent) and thus subject to these interest rates, compared to the national average (56.2
percent.)
17
Nationally, 51 percent of credit card applications result in new credit in our data, compared to
40 percent in the rural southern region and 36 percent in rural southern Persistent Poverty
Counties.
18
This is partially explained by lower average credit scores among consumers in the
16
For most forms of credit, when a consumer submits an application, the lender will seek information about the
consumer from a nationwide credit reporting company. This is referred to as a “hard inquiry.” Hard inquiries are
visible on consumers’ credit reports and are one input into most credit scoring models. Most, but not all, hard
inquiries result from applications for a new account. For example, applications for a credit limit increase on an
existing account may also generate a hard inquiry. We define success as an inquiry that results in the opening of a
new, corresponding account or a limit increase of at least 5 percent within 14 days of the inquiry date. A consumer
may have several inquiries within this time period, with some successful. We take the average success rate for each
consumer between March 2020 and April 2022 and then average over all consumers in each region. If lenders deny a
credit application before initiating a hard inquiry, the inquiry will not appear in the CFPB’s Consumer Credit Panel
(CCP) and will not be counted as a failed origination in the success rates presented here. Furthermore, lenders do not
always send inquiries to all three NCRAs. Because the CCP includes data from only one of the three NCRAs, there are
likely to be additional applications not captured by our data.
17
We calculated the share of general purpose credit card accounts in the Federal Reserve Board’s Y-14 dataset that are
revolving divided by the total number of revolving and transacting accounts in November 2021. The Y-14 dataset
contains monthly bank holding companies with total consolidated assets exceeding $50 billion.
18
The overall origination rate, aggregated across credit score bins, can be obtained from the distribution of
consumers’ credit scores in a region, shown in Table 2, multiplied by the origination rates in Figure 2.
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 13
rural southern region, as shown in Table 2.
19
However, Figure 2 shows that credit card
applications in the rural southern region are generally 3–5 percentage points less likely to be
approved than applications by consumers with similar credit scores the nationally across every
credit score tier. This difference means that rural southerners with subprime credit scores are
20 percent less likely to successfully obtain a credit card than consumers with subprime credit
scores nationwide. There are many potential explanations for this gap in success rates. Further
analysis to differentiate between these factors is beyond the scope of this report.
FIGURE 2: PERCENT OF CREDIT CARD APPLICATIONS ORIGINATED
Note: Credit score categories are defined as: deep subprime (credit scores below 499), subprime (credit scores of 500-
599), near prime (credit scores of 600-659), prime (credit scores of 660-779) and super-prime (credit scores of 780 or
above). People without a credit score were categorized as unscored. The southern region includes Alabama, Arkansas,
Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. PPC stands for persistent poverty
county. Success rates are defined as the share of inquiries that result in the opening of a new, corresponding account
or a limit increase of at least 5 percent within 14 days of the inquiry date. Source: CFPB CCP March 2020-March
2022.
19
For example, if success rates in rural southern PPCs were equal to the national averages, the overall success rate
would be 41.4 percent, rather than 36 percent.
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 14
2.2 Auto Loans
Forty-two percent of rural southerners and of the subset of those consumers living in Persistent
Poverty Counties have auto loans. This percentage is similar to that for consumers nationwide
but three percentage points lower than the percentage of consumers in other rural areas of the
U.S with an auto loan. As shown in Table 5, the median balance outstanding on auto loans for
rural southerners is a bit higher compared to consumers in other parts of the country.
20
However, because median incomes in the rural south are much lower than the national average,
the burden of auto loans may be comparatively higher for consumers in rural areas in the
southern region. The median auto loan balance as a percent of tract-level median income in the
rural south, for example, is 40 percent compared to 26 percent nationwide. In rural southern
Persistent Poverty Counties, the median ratio rises to 46 percent. This means that in southern
rural Persistent Poverty Counties, the median auto loan balance is nearly half of median
household income.
Relatively high delinquency rates may also indicate that that auto loans are more likely to pose a
financial burden for rural consumers in the region. Consumers with auto loans in rural southern
Persistent Poverty Counties are almost twice as likely to be more than 60 days delinquent on at
least one auto loan than consumers nationwide (20 percent compared to 11 percent.) In the rural
southern region as a whole, 16 percent of consumers with auto loans had a severe delinquency
between March 2020 and April 2022.
TABLE 5: AUTO LOANS, IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION AND NATIONWIDE
Rural Rural
Rural
PPCs in non-
southern Nationwide
southern southern
region
region region
Percent with auto loan 42 42 45 42
Median balance on auto loan
Median tract-level household income
among consumers with an auto loan
Ratio of median auto loan balance to
tract median household income in
$14,792
$38,443
46
$14,496
$43,917
40
$13,450
$53,800
31
$13,249
$71,687
26
percent
20
Most auto lenders furnish to the nationwide credit reporting agencies. However, many small finance companies
and Buy-Here-Pay-Here dealerships do not. Therefore, the estimated share of consumers with an auto loan is likely
underestimated using only the information in the CCP. Small finance companies and Buy-Here-Pay-Here dealerships
are more likely to serve subprime consumers, we are especially likely to underestimate subprime and deep subprime
auto loans. For more information, see Clarkberg, Gardner, and Low, “Data Point: Subprime Auto Loan Outcomes by
Lender Type” (September 2021) available at https://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/documents/cfpb_subprime-
auto_data-point_2021-09.pdf
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 15
Rural Rural
Rural
PPCs in non-
southern Nationwide
southern southern
region
region region
Percent with a delinquency on auto
20 16 10 11
loan over a two-year period
Note: The southern region includes Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South
Carolina, and Tennessee. PPC stands for persistent poverty county. Source: CFPB CCP 2020–2022.
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 16
Figure 3 displays the percent of auto loan applications from people living in the region that were
successfully originated compared to the national average.
21
Among consumers with the highest
credit scores, origination rates in the rural south are similar to rates nationwide. However,
consumers with subprime or deep subprime credit scores are 19 to 24 percent less likely to
successfully originate an auto loan in the rural south compared to the national average. For
additional analysis by majority-minority Census tract, see Appendix A. Due to longer commutes
and a lack of alternative transit infrastructure compared to urban dwellers, many rural
southerners remain highly dependent on personal vehicles for transportation, and may
therefore be particularly impacted by difficulty obtaining an auto loan.
FIGURE 3: PERCENT OF AUTO LOAN APPLICATIONS ORIGINATED
Note: Credit score categories are defined as: deep subprime (credit scores below 499), subprime (credit scores of 500-
599), near prime (credit scores of 600-659), prime (credit scores of 660-779) and super-prime (credit scores of 780 or
above). People without a credit score were categorized as unscored. The southern region includes Alabama, Arkansas,
Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. PPC stands for persistent poverty
county. Source: CFPB CCP March 2020-2022.
21
If lenders deny a credit application before initiating a hard inquiry, the inquiry will not appear in the CFPB’s
Consumer Credit Panel (CCP) and will not be counted as a failed origination in the success rates presented here.
Furthermore, lenders do not always send inquiries to all three NCRAs. Because the CCP includes data from only one
of the three NCRAs, there are likely to be additional applications not captured by our data.
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 17
2.3 Home Loans
Most consumers, particularly low- and middle-income consumers, cannot purchase a home with
cash up front and therefore need to finance their home purchase through mortgages. Rural
southerners are less likely to have a first-lien mortgage than consumers nationally.
22
Nineteen
percent of consumers in rural southern Persistent Poverty Counties and 23 percent of rural
southerners have a first-lien mortgage, compared to 29 percent of consumers nationally and 28
percent in other rural areas. This may be partially explained by a higher share of rural
southerners who have paid off their mortgages. Slightly fewer rural southerners (70 percent) live
in owner-occupied housing than consumers in rural areas outside the southern region (73
percent.) Among consumers with a first-lien mortgage, the median mortgage balance in the
rural southern region is slightly lower than the median balance in other rural areas ($95,790
compared to $103,489.) Unlike with auto loans, mortgage debt balances relative to income do
not appear to be much higher in the rural southern region. The median first-lien mortgage
balance as a percent of tract-level median income in the region (257 percent) is less than the
national average (268 percent), but greater than in other rural areas (233 percent). However,
other measures of mortgage debt burden, such as delinquency rates, are higher in the rural
south. For example, consumers in rural southern Persistent Poverty Counties are twice as likely
to be delinquent on their mortgage as rural consumers outside the southern region.
23
TABLE 6: FIRST-LIEN MORTGAGES, IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION AND NATIONWIDE
Rural Rural
Rural
PPCs in non-
southern Nationwide
southern southern
region
region region
Percent with mortgage 19 23 28 29
Median balance on mortgage $76,627 $95,790 $103,489 $165,975
Median tract-level household
income among consumers with a $40,117 $46,189 $56,169 $79,862
mortgage
Ratio of median mortgage balance to
median income (percent)
251 257 233 268
22
A first-lien mortgage loan is paid first in the event of default, and a second-lien or “subordinated” loan is paid out
only if there is money left over after paying off the first-lien mortgage. Typically, home purchase loans are first-lien
mortgages and other mortgage products such as home equity loans are not. It is possible to use a second-lien
mortgage to finance a down payment for home purchase and mortgage products like home equity loans or HELOCs
may be first-lien if the first mortgage has been paid off.
23
This data covers the period from 2020-2022 and therefore reflects the challenges of the pandemic as well as the
flow of pandemic relief to historically underserved and rural areas. Many of the Housing Assistance Fund programs
administered by the states for homeowners behind on mortgage payments due to the pandemic did not begin
receiving applications until early 2022 and therefore may not be fully reflected in this report.
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 18
Rural Rural
Rural
PPCs in non-
southern Nationwide
southern southern
region
region region
Percent with a mortgage delinquency
6 4 3 2
over a two-year period
Note: The southern region includes Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South
Carolina, and Tennessee. PPC stands for persistent poverty county. Source: CFPB CCP 2020–2022.
We examine differences in mortgage interest rates and the share of manufactured home loans
more fully using data from the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) for the most recent year
available, 2021.
24
For further analysis and discussion of mortgage lending in the southern
region, see the CFPB’s report on banking and credit access in the South.
25
Rural southerners
who take out mortgages tend to pay higher rates than consumers elsewhere. In 2021, the mean
interest rate for a home purchase loan in rural southern Persistent Poverty Counties was 3.942
percent, compared to 3.127 percent nationally. The difference in median interest rates is much
smaller (25 basis points), which indicates that the distribution of interest rates has a long right
tail, with some consumers paying much higher interest rates than the median mortgage holder.
TABLE 7: HOME PURCHASE MORTGAGE APPLICATIONS IN 2021, IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION
AND NATIONWIDE
Rural Rural
Rural
PPCs in non-
southern Nationwide
southern southern
region
region region
Total mortgage applications for home
purchase
65,011 206,133 555,446 6,334,679
Total mortgage applications for home
purchase per 1,000 residents
16 19 16 19
Median interest rate 3.250 3.125 3.125 3.000
Mean interest rate 3.942 3.512 3.262 3.127
Percent originated 44 55 67 71
Percent denied 39 27 15 11
Percent of originations that are
manufactured homes (home and land 5 9 10 3
secured)
24
For more information on this dataset, see Liu, Jo, Skhirtladze, and Barriere, “An Updated Review of the New and
Revised Data Points in HMDA,” (August 2020), available at
https://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/documents/cfpb_data-points_updated-review-hmda_report.pdf.
25
See CFPB, “Banking and Credit Access in the Southern Region of the U.S.,” (June 2023).
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 19
Rural Rural
Rural
PPCs in non-
southern Nationwide
southern southern
region
region region
Percent of originations that are
manufactured homes (only home 6 7 3 1
secured)
Note: All rows refer to loans for home purchases and exclude refinance applications. The southern region includes
Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. PPC stands for
persistent poverty county. Source: HMDA 2021.
As is the case for other credit markets, perceived creditworthiness and general credit market
conditions influence the share of home loan applications that are originated or denied as well as
the interest rate paid when originated. In the mortgage market, these measures are also affected
by characteristics of the product itself, such as the loan-to-value ratio of the property, the
duration of the loan, the type of property. It is important to note that the numbers displayed in
Table 7 are unconditional and do not account for important differences in these factors.
26
Additionally, HMDA data do not capture certain types of alternative home financing such as
seller-financing, land contracts, or lease-to-own arrangements, which are disproportionately
used by low-income consumers.
27
Mortgage borrowers in the rural southern region are four times more likely to get mortgages for
manufactured homes than mortgage borrowers nationwide (16 percent compared to 4 percent.)
The share of home-only (chattel) loans, for which the land underneath the home is not used as
collateral, is seven times higher in the rural southern region (7 percent compared to 1 percent.)
These loans tend to be much more expensive than other mortgages.
28
Furthermore, many of
these homeowners rent the land where their home is located, making them vulnerable to both
repossession by the lender and rent hikes or eviction by the owner of the land. Consumers can
26
While the HMDA data contain information about many of these variables, further analysis controlling for these
factors is beyond the scope of this report.
27
Among consumers who have ever borrowed to buy a home, an estimated six percent had used a lease-purchase
(rent-to-own) agreement, six percent had used a seller-financed mortgage, five percent had used a land contract, and
11 percent had used a home-only loan. See The Pew Charitable Trusts, “Millions of Americans Have Used Risky
Financing Arrangements to Buy Homes,” (April 2022), available www.pewtrusts.org/-
/media/assets/2022/05/millionsofamericanshaveusedriskyfinancing_brief.pdf
28
Manufactured homes are factory-built housing constructed after June 15, 1976 in accordance with the U.S.
Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards codes.
Manufactured homes are distinct from RVs, park model homes, and modular home sections. See Russell, O’Reilly,
Schneider, Melton, Schwartz and Leitner, “Manufactured Housing Finance: New Insights from the Home Mortgage
Disclosure Act Data,” (May 2021), available at https://www.consumerfinance.gov/data-
research/researchreports/manufactured-housing-finance-new-insights-hmda/ and “Manufactured-housing
consumer finance in the United States,” available at
https://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201409_cfpb_report_manufactured-housing.pdf.
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 20
lose their home if they fall behind on their lot rent and lack the means to move their home to a
new location.
2.4 Student Loans
Eighteen percent of consumers nationwide have an open student loan compared to 15 percent
within the rural south. The ratio of consumers with a student loan to residents with at least
some college education is slightly higher in the rural southern region (32 percent) than for the
nation as a whole (29 percent). For those that do have student loan debt, the following analysis
shows it may be more of a burden for those in the rural southern region than nationally,
particularly when looking at balance-to-income ratios, delinquency rates, and lower levels of
accessing relief options such as income driven relief (IDR) plans.
Table 8 displays the characteristics of student loan borrowers in the rural south and nationally.
Due to payment suspensions during the pandemic, this analysis focuses on all student loan
borrowers as of February 2020, prior to the enactment of the CARES Act.
29
Table 8 provides a
baseline for several measures that are correlated with the ability of borrowers to repay their
loans after the measures end.
30
TABLE 8: STUDENT LOAN BORROWERS AS OF MARCH 2020, IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION AND
NATIONWIDE
Rural Rural
Rural
PPCs in non-
southern Nationwide
southern southern
region
region region
Median scheduled monthly student
loan payment
$151 $157 $169 $192
Median remaining student loan
balance
$18,233 $17,499 $17,231 $20,286
Median tract-level household annual
income
$37,230 $42,780 $53,718 $71,017
Student loan balance as a percent of
tract-level income (median)
59 52 44 43
29
While federal student loans comprise the majority of student loans, the credit bureau data do not allow us to
distinguish between federally held and privately held student loans. The latter did not necessarily benefit from the
payment suspensions afforded to federal student loans. However, we do not expect the inclusion of some privately
held student loans to substantially impact this analysis.
30
For more information on student loan borrowers and the construction of these measures, see Conkling, Gibbs and
Jimenez-Read, “Student Loan Borrowers Potentially At-Risk when Payment Suspension Ends,” (April 2022) available
at: https://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/documents/cfpb_cares-vulnerable-student-loan-borrowers_report_2022-
04.pdf (hereinafter Conkling, Gibbs and Jimenez-Read 2022).
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 21
Rural Rural
Rural
PPCs in non-
southern Nationwide
southern southern
region
region region
Percent of borrowers delinquent 11 9 7 7
Median balance if delinquent $19,566 $19,766 $22,202 $25,089
Percent of borrowers in default 16 14 10 9
Percent receiving assistance
through IDR
20 19 21 21
Note: For this table, the sample is restricted to borrowers with outstanding student loans in February 2020. Median
scheduled monthly payments exclude borrowers who have defaulted or have deferred payments. Delinquencies are
defined as at least 90 days past due but not yet in default. Delinquency and default are measured for a single month,
not cumulatively. Median balances exclude accounts with $0 balances. Receiving assistance excludes accounts with a
remaining $0 balance. The CCP does not contain consumer-level income information. The southern region includes
Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. PPC stands for
persistent poverty county. Sample size refers to the number of unique consumer observations.
Student loan borrowers in the rural south have lower monthly payments and delinquent balance
amounts than the respective national averages. Student loan borrowers in rural parts of the
southern region, especially those in Persistent Poverty Counties, however, tend to live in tracts
with lower median incomes. Consequently, these borrowers face a much higher student loan
debt burden. The median ratio of student loan balances to tract-level household annual income
is 52 percent in the rural south compared to 43 percent for consumers nationally. Comparatively
high rates of delinquency and default on student loans among rural southerners also potentially
point to greater student-loan debt burdens in the region. Meanwhile, rural southern student
loan borrowers are slightly less likely to be on income-driven repayment (IDR) plans before the
pandemic and subsequent relief measures.
31
The combination of these factors indicates that, relative to both student loan borrowers
nationally and to borrowers in non-southern rural counties, consumers in the rural south may
have a harder time meeting their payment obligations when pandemic relief policies end.
31
Payment assistance refers to borrowers who are likely enrolled in an income-driven repayment (IDR) plan (See
Conkling, Gibbs and Jimenez-Read 2022).
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 22
3. Consumer Distress and
Delinquencies
3.1 Medical Collections
Medical debts are the most common type of third-party collection furnished on consumers’
credit reports.
32
Such collections can adversely affect a consumer’s ability to access financial
products, housing, or employment. In March 2022, in response to concerns of erroneous
reporting of medical debt and the consequences for consumers, Equifax, Experian, and
TransUnion announced their decision to stop reporting certain types of medical debt on credit
reports, to be implemented over time and completed in April 2023. This entailed not reporting
medical bills until they are one year past due (compared to 180 days previously), removing paid
medical collections entirely, and no longer reporting medical debt tradelines under $500.
33
A 2022 CFPB publication explored the impact these changes may have on consumers nationally
and found that about half of consumers with medical collection tradelines will have all of them
removed. Moreover, the removals will be concentrated geographically. South Carolina had the
second-highest per-capita share of medical collections to be removed, following West Virginia.
34
Moreover, the southern region has the highest percentage of individuals with medical debt in
collections.
35
Rural southerners are also more likely to have paid off medical debt or collections
less than $500 than consumers nationwide. A 2023 CFPB publication finds that removing
medical collections from a consumer’s credit report increases their credit score by 25 points on
average, leading to expanded access to credit at a lower cost.
36
32
See Sandler and Nathe “Consumer Credit Trends: Paid and Low-Balance Medical Collections on Consumer Credit
Reports,” (July 2022), available at https://www.consumerfinance.gov/data-research/research-reports/paid-and-
low-balance-medical-collections-on-consumer-credit-reports/ (hereinafter Sandler and Nathe 2022).
33
See “Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion Support U.S. Consumers with Changes to Medical Collection Debt
Reporting”, March 18. 2022., Press Release. Available at https://newsroom.transunion.com/equifax-experian-
andtransunion-support-us-consumers-with-changes-to-medical-collection-debt-reporting/.
34
See Sandler and Nathe 2022
35
See Figure 3 in “Medical Debt Burden in the United States,” (March 2023), available at
https://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/documents/cfpb_medical-debt-burden-in-the-united-states_report_2022-
03.pdf.
36
See Brown and Wilson, “Data Point: Consumer Credit and the Removal of Medical Collections from Credit
Reports,” (April 2023), available at https://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/documents/cfpb_consumer-credit-removal-
medical-collections-from-credit-reports_2023-04.pdf
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 23
TABLE 9: MEDICAL COLLECTIONS, IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION AND NATIONWIDE
Rural
PPCs in
southern
region
Rural
southern
region
Rural non-
southern Na
region
tionwide
Percent with medical debt
collection over a two-year 29 28 19 17
period
Percent with any medical
debt collection paid or less
than $500 over a two-year
20 20 15 12
period
Note: The southern region includes Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South
Carolina, and Tennessee. PPC stands for persistent poverty county. NCRAs are expected to remove paid medical debt
as well as that with an initial balance below at least $500 from credit reports in 2023. Source: CCP 2020–2022.
An above-average share of consumers in the rural south (28 percent), and, in particular, in rural
southern Persistent Poverty Counties (29 percent), has at least one medical collection on their
credit record over a two-year period. This share is only 17 percent on average for consumers
nationally and 19 percent among rural consumers outside of the southern region. The share of
rural consumers with a medical collection tradeline varies widely among states in the southern
region, 34 percent of rural South Carolinians have a medical debt collection tradeline, over 41
percent more than the share of rural consumers with a medical collection in Mississippi (24
percent.) This means that all eight states in the rural southern region have a higher share of
consumers with medical collections than the national average or rural areas outside the
southern region.
Table 9 shows that, compared to consumers nationally, a greater share of consumers in the rural
south may have at least one medical collection removed from their credit records. Twenty
percent of consumers in both the rural southern region and in rural Persistent Poverty Counties
in the southern region will likely see at least one medical collection removed from their credit
report as part of the nationwide credit reporting agencies’ plan to exclude paid medical
collections and reported medical collections less than $500 as it is implemented. This share is
five percentage points higher than in other rural areas across the country and 8 percentage
points higher than the national average (12 percent). This appears to be driven primarily by the
higher prevalence of medical collections in the rural southern region, not a higher share of
consumers with medical collections benefiting from the changes. Seventy-one percent (20
percent out of 28 percent) of rural southerners with medical collections will have at least one
medical collection record removed. This is comparable to the national average, and much lower
than the share of rural consumers with medical collections outside the southern region who will
benefit (79 percent.)
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 24
We display the relative importance of medical collection removals for consumers in the southern
region at the county level in Figure 4. The figure shows the share of consumers who are likely to
have at least one collection removed from their credit reports in each county, either because the
medical collection had been paid or it was less than $500, relative to the national average of 12
percent.
37
The share of consumers with at least one reported medical collection that would be
removed is more than 150 percent of the national average in southern counties and almost all
counties in South Carolina. One reason for the large share of removals in South Carolina is that
South Carolina has the second highest share (behind West Virginia) of consumers with at least
one medical collection on their credit report.
FIGURE 4: RELATIVE SHARE OF CONSUMERS WITH LIKELY MEDICAL COLLECTIONS REMOVALS FROM
CREDIT REPORTS
Note: The southern region includes Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South
Carolina, and Tennessee. CCP 2020–2022.
3.2 Consumer Delinquencies
Consumers who have trouble paying for a bill or expense often have multiple financial
difficulties. We investigate the likelihood that consumers in the southern region who have one
type of delinquency also have a delinquency on a consumer debt of another kind. Figure 5 shows
these likelihoods for consumers in the rural southern region, which look similar to those of
37
Specifically, we calculate the share of consumers in each county who will have at least one collection removed
divided by the national share. Removals include previous collections that are paid in full as of March 2022 and
collections with an initial balance less than $500. However, removals are primarily driven by collections with an
initial balance of less than $500, as most medical collections nationally and in the southern region remain unpaid.
The policies of medical providers may drive differences in the share of collections furnished to credit reporting
companies.
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 25
consumers nationally (not shown). Among rural southerners who have each type of tradeline
(medical collection, mortgage, student loan, auto loan, and credit card), the y-axis labels show
the percent who also had at least one severe delinquency in the corresponding loan type between
March 2020 and April 2022.
38
FIGURE 5: SHARE OF RURAL SOUTHERN CONSUMERS WITH MEDICAL DEBT OR DELINQUENCY ON
VARIOUS TYPES OF CREDIT
Note: Delinquencies are defined as loans at least 60 days past due, charged-off, or in collection at least once over the
period of March 2020-April 2022. All percentages are conditional on the consumer having that type of loan except
medical collections, due to a lack of data on who has medical debt. For consistency with the other loan types, the
definition of student loan delinquency differs here from what we present in Table 8. Notably, our definition of student
loan delinquency here includes loans that are in default. The southern region includes Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia,
Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Source: CFPB CCP.
Overall, rural southern consumers are most likely to have a reported medical collection (at 28
percent) compared to other types of delinquencies. Among borrowers with the corresponding
type of debt, the next most prevalent delinquency categories are student loans (21 percent) and
credit cards (18 percent). Each row corresponds to the sample of borrowers with a delinquency
38
We report only delinquencies of more than 60 days, collections, and charge-offs in order to highlight severe
delinquencies that are more substantial than an occasional missed payment of a few days. These delinquencies may
include those on active accounts as well as closed accounts and those that have been charged off and remain on the
consumer’s credit record.
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 26
of the loan type indicated on the y-axis, and each cell contains the percentage of this sample with
an additional delinquency, corresponding to the type indicated on the x-axis.
Rural southerners are considerably more likely to have a medical collection on their credit
report (28 percent) compared to consumers nationally (17 percent, Table 9). Those with a
medical collection have a dramatically higher prevalence of other types of delinquencies on their
credit accounts. For example, Figure 5 shows that 18 percent of credit card holders in the rural
southern region have a delinquency on at least one credit card account. However, among credit
card holders with a reported medical collection, the delinquency rate is 38 percent.
39
We cannot
distinguish whether having a reported medical collection leads to higher rates of credit card
delinquency or whether consumers with medical collections are also consumers who would
otherwise have relatively high credit card delinquency rates.
Similarly, the mortgage delinquency rate among mortgage holders in the rural south is only four
percent; however, among those with a medical collection tradeline, the rate is over twice as high,
at 10 percent. This pattern is even starker for those with a reported medical collection and an
auto loan or student loan. While 16 percent of rural southerners with auto loans had at least one
severe delinquency on an auto loan between March 2020 and April 2022, those with a medical
collection tradeline have a 33 percent rate of auto loan delinquency, and while 21 percent of
consumers with student loans are delinquent in the same region, those with a medical collection
tradeline had a 36 percent rate of student loan delinquency.
Delinquency rates on other kinds of loan products are even higher among consumers with an
auto loan delinquency. For example, 20 percent of consumers with an auto loan delinquency
also had a mortgage delinquency, nearly five times higher than the overall mortgage
delinquency rate (4 percent). Among those with an auto delinquency and a credit card, the share
with a credit card delinquency is 58 percent, over three times the credit card delinquency rate
for all consumers in the sample (18 percent). Likewise, the share of student loan borrowers with
a delinquency is 21 percent, but among borrowers with a delinquent auto loan, the student loan
delinquency rate is 38 percent.
39
We use delinquency rate here to refer to the percent of consumers with at least one delinquency, rather than the
share of accounts or balances that are delinquent.
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 27
4. Conclusion
The findings above present an initial overview of the consumer finances of rural southerners and
is intended to start a conversation with stakeholders in the region about priorities for further
research and policy development. Key findings include:
Compared to the nation as a whole, rural southerners are 10.6 percent less likely to have
a credit card and 17.9 percent less likely to have an outstanding mortgage. These gaps
may partially reflect relatively lower likelihoods of successfully taking out credit, even
within credit score tiers. Without adequate access to these products, consumers may
experience increased difficulty responding to unexpected expenses or building wealth
through home equity.
Across credit products, rural southerners who obtain credit tend to pay higher interest
rates on average. In rural parts of the southern region, the average interest rate on a
mortgage was 3.51 percent, compared to 3.13 percent nationally. For credit cards, the
median interest rate in the region’s rural areas is 18.99 percent, compared to 17.74
percent in other rural areas and 17.90 percent nationwide.
Rural southerners are more likely to have medical collections (28 percent) than
consumers elsewhere (17 percent). The prevalence of medical collections varies widely
among states in the southern region, 34 percent of rural South Carolinians have a
medical debt collection tradeline, over 41 percent more than the share of rural
consumers with a medical collection in Mississippi (24 percent).
Medical collections are the most common type of delinquency in the rural southern
region, followed by student loans (21 percent) and credit cards (18 percent). Rural
southerners with medical collections are much more likely to be delinquent on other
types of debt. For example, 16 percent of rural southerners with an auto loan were at
least 60 days delinquent at some point over a two-year period. For those with medical
collections, the auto loan two-year delinquency rate more than doubles, to 33 percent.
This report is intended to provide a starting point in better understanding the financial
situations, needs, and challenges of consumers in rural areas in the southern region. The CFPB
continues to monitor credit conditions in rural southern region and other areas within the
United States of America.
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 28
APPENDIX A: AUTO ORIGINATIONS IN MAJORITY-
MINORITY CENSUS TRACTS
FIGURE 6: PERCENT OF AUTO LOAN APPLICATIONS ORIGINATED
Note: Credit score categories are defined as: deep subprime (credit scores below 499), subprime (credit scores of 500-
599), near prime (credit scores of 600-659), prime (credit scores of 660-779) and super-prime (credit scores of 780 or
above). People without a credit score were categorized as unscored. The southern region includes Alabama, Arkansas,
Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. PPC stands for persistent poverty
county. Source: CFPB CCP March 2020-2022.
DATA POINT: CONSUMER FINANCES IN THE RURAL SOUTHERN REGION 29
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
ALABAMA
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Alabama
Map of counties in Alabama.
Metro PPC
*
Metro, non-PPC
Rural PPC
Rural, non-PPC
*
persistent poverty county
Consumer credit proles in the southern region in comparison: Alabama.
Credit characteristic National average Alabama Rural Alabama
Percent with mortgage 29 27 22
Median balance on mortgage $165,975 $124,220 $88,831
Percent with credit card (cc) 80 71 66
Median balance on cc $1,207 $1,117 $980
Utilization rate (cc) 31 37 41
Percent with auto loan 42 43 43
Median balance on auto loan $13,249 $14,415 $14,533
Percent with student loan 18 18 14
Percent w/ medical debt collection 17 22 25
Median household income $63,929 $50,833 $41,603
Deep subprime 4 6 6
Subprime 22 29 32
Near prime 12 13 15
Prime 37 32 30
Super-prime 26 20 17
Observations 5,734,997 88,659 19,773
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
ALABAMA
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Share of rural southern consumers in Alabama with delinquencies on multiple types
of credit.
Percent
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
38 37 40 13
57 47 12 31
51 37 6 42
61 36 24 41
39 32 14 32
Mortgage
Mortgage
(4%)
Medical
collection
Medical
collection
(25%)
(19%)
Student loan
Student
loan
(17%)
Auto loan
Auto loan
(19%)
Credit card
Credit card
Also had this kind of delinquency
Consumers who had
this kind of delinquency
Relative share of consumers with likely
medical debt collections removals from
credit report.
Below national average
1-50% above national average
More than 50% above
national average
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
Rural Alabama
National average
ALABAMA
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Student loan borrowers in Alabama.
Credit characteristic National average Alabama Rural Alabama
Median scheduled monthly student loan
payment
$192 $175 $156
Median annual household income $71,017 $56,550 $41,604
Median student loan debt balance to
income
43 56 64
Share delinquent 7 8 8
Median balance if delinquent $25,089 $27, 336 $26,434
Share in default 9 12 13
Share receiving assistance through IDR
*
21 21 18
Observations 917, 310 13,906 2,408
*
Income-driven repayment
Percent of applications originated for credit cards and auto loans,
rural Alabama vs. national average.
Credit card
Success rate %
Credit score
prole
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
69
72
56
61
36
40
16
20
3
6
14
26
Auto loans
Success rate %
Credit score
prole
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
82
74
51
27
15
27
80
75
61
37
21
39
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
Credit score prole
ALABAMA
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Auto loan application acceptance rates in Alabama, by credit score.
Auto loans
Success rate %
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
AL majority-minority
census tracts
AL non-majority-minority
census tracts
National average
75
67
49
27
17
23
33
38
17
21
32
37
58
61
74
75
81
80
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
ARKANSAS
Arkansas
Metro PPC
*
Metro, non-PPC
Rural PPC
Rural, non-PPC
*
persistent poverty county
Map of counties in Arkansas.
Consumer credit proles in the southern region in comparison: Arkansas.
Credit characteristic National average Arkansas Rural Arkansas
Percent with mortgage 29 27 23
Median balance on mortgage $165,975 $112,171 $81,769
Percent with credit card (cc) 80 72 68
Median balance on cc $1,207 $1,082 $981
Utilization rate (cc) 31 38 39
Percent with auto loan 42 47 46
Median balance on auto loan $13,249 $14,786 $14,633
Percent with student loan 18 18 15
Percent w/ medical debt collection 17 23 27
Median household income $63,929 $48,724 $41,574
Deep subprime 4 5 5
Subprime 22 29 31
Near prime 12 13 14
Prime 37 32 30
Super-prime 26 20 20
Observations 5,734,997 52,716 19,043
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
ARKANSAS
Share of rural southern consumers in Arkansas with delinquencies on multiple types
of credit.
Percent
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
39 36 35 8
65 38 41 36
47 42 13 48
60 38 16 46
37 29 13 35
Mortgage
Mortgage
(4%)
Medical
collection
Medical
collection
(27%)
(22%)
Student loan
Student
loan
(17%)
Auto loan
Auto loan
(19%)
Credit card
Credit card
Also had this kind of delinquency
Consumers who had
this kind of delinquency
Relative share of consumers
with likely medical debt
collections removals from
credit report.
Below national average
1-50% above national average
More than 50% above
national average
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
ARKANSAS
Student loan borrowers in Arkansas.
Credit characteristic National average Arkansas Rural Arkansas
Median scheduled monthly student loan
payment
$192 $166 $140
Median annual household income $71,017 $52,301 $41,794
Median student loan debt balance to
income
43 47 37
Share delinquent 7 9 9
Median balance if delinquent $25,089 $21,027 $15,117
Share in default 9 12 15
Share receiving assistance through IDR
*
21 20 18
Observations 917, 310 8,560 2,487
*
Income-driven repayment
Percent of applications originated for credit cards and auto loans,
rural Arkansas vs. national average.
Credit card
Success rate %
Credit score
prole
C
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
S
Dee
Rural Arkansas
National averag
66
72
57
61
38
40
17
20
3
6
16
26
r
u
N
p
e
edi
pe
ea
Su
su
Un
Auto loans
Success rate %
t score
prole
0 20 40 60 80
r-prime
Prime
r prime
bprime
bprime
scored
82
75
59
33
21
37
80
75
61
37
21
39
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
ARKANSAS
Auto loan application acceptance rates in Arkansas, by credit score.
Auto loans
Success rate %
Credit score prole
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
AR majority-minority
census tracts
AR non-majority-minority
census tracts
National average
84
74
55
31
17
24
40
38
20
21
36
37
61
61
76
75
82
80
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
GEORGIA
Consumer credit proles in the southern region in comparison: Georgia.
Credit characteristic National average Georgia Rural Georgia
Percent with mortgage 29 28 22
Median balance on mortgage $165,975 $151,815 $106,475
Percent with credit card (cc) 80 77 66
Median balance on cc $1,207 $1,192 $1,037
Utilization rate (cc) 31 37 39
Percent with auto loan 42 42 41
Median balance on auto loan $13,249 $14,851 $15,371
Percent with student loan 18 20 16
Percent w/ medical debt collection 17 21 27
Median household income $63,929 $60,046 $41,935
Deep subprime 4 5 6
Subprime 22 28 32
Near prime 12 14 14
Prime 37 34 30
Super-prime 26 20 18
Observations 5,734,997 185,971 29,985
Georgia
Metro PPC
*
Metro, non-PPC
Rural PPC
Rural, non-PPC
*
persistent poverty county
Map of counties in Georgia.
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
GEORGIA
Share of rural southern consumers in Georgia with delinquencies on multiple types
of credit.
Percent
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
37 31 36 8
54 40 35 31
45 37 11 44
58 40 22 46
34 30 12 37
Mortgage
Mortgage
(3%)
Medical
collection
Medical
collection
(27%)
(21%)
Student loan
Student
loan
(16%)
Auto loan
Auto loan
(18%)
Credit card
Credit card
Also had this kind of delinquency
Consumers who had
this kind of delinquency
Re
wi
co
cr
lative share of consumers
th likely medical debt
llections removals from
edit report.
Below national average
1-50% above national average
More than 50% above
national average
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
GEORGIA
Success rate %
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
S
eDe
Rural Georgia
National average
66
72
55
61
37
40
17
20
3
6
16
26
u
N
p
pe
ea
Su
su
U
prole
Credit score Credit
r-
r
b
b
ns
sc
pr
pr
Pr
pr
pr
pr
co
Student loan borrowers in Georgia.
Credit characteristic National average Georgia Rural Georgia
Median scheduled monthly student loan
payment
$192 $193 $160
Median annual household income $71,017 $65,265 $44,212
Median student loan debt balance to
income
43 54 47
Share delinquent 7 9 9
Median balance if delinquent $25,089 $29,777 $18,534
Share in default 9 11 13
Share receiving assistance through IDR
*
21 22 22
Observations 917, 310 33,931 4,126
*
Income-driven repayment
Percent of applications originated for credit cards and auto loans,
rural Georgia vs. national average.
Credit card Auto loans
Success rate %
ore
ole
0 20 40 60 80
ime
ime
ime
ime
ime
red
81
71
55
29
13
26
80
75
61
37
21
39
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
GEORGIA
Auto loan application acceptance rates in Georgia, by credit score.
Auto loans
Success rate %
Credit score prole
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
GA majority-minority
census tracts
GA non-majority-minority
census tracts
National average
79
70
55
30
17
18
33
38
17
21
35
37
61
61
74
75
80
80
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
LOUISIANA
Consumer credit proles in the southern region in comparison: Louisiana.
Credit characteristic National average Louisiana Rural Louisiana
Percent with mortgage 29 26 21
Median balance on mortgage $165,975 $128,837 $80,509
Percent with credit card (cc) 80 70 62
Median balance on cc $1,207 $1,121 $977
Utilization rate (cc) 31 37 40
Percent with auto loan 42 43 43
Median balance on auto loan $13,249 $15,831 $16,325
Percent with student loan 18 19 16
Percent w/ medical debt collection 17 25 29
Median household income $63,929 $51,179 $40,799
Deep subprime 4 5 6
Subprime 22 31 35
Near prime 12 14 15
Prime 37 31 29
Super-prime 26 19 16
Observations 5,734,997 78,652 12,218
Louisiana
Map of counties
in Louisiana.
Metro PPC
*
Metro, non-PPC
Rural PPC
Rural, non-PPC
*
persistent poverty county
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
LOUISIANA
Share of rural southern consumers in Louisiana with delinquencies on multiple types
of credit.
Percent
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
40 35 42 10
60 41 33 34
45 40 11 48
56 38 20 46
34 31 14 38
Mortgage
Mortgage
(5%)
Medical
collection
Medical
collection
(29%)
(22%)
Student loan
Student
loan
(19%)
Auto loan
Auto loan
(20%)
Credit card
Credit card
Also had this kind of delinquency
Consumers who had
this kind of delinquency
elative share of consumers
with likely medical debt
ollections removals from
redit report.
Below national average
1-50% above national average
More than 50% above
national average
R
c
c
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
LOUISIANA
Student loan borrowers in Louisiana.
Credit characteristic National average Louisiana Rural Louisiana
Median scheduled monthly student loan
payment
$192 $163 $145
Median annual household income $71,017 $53,696 $38,331
Median student loan debt balance to
income
43 52 79
Share delinquent 7 9 10
Median balance if delinquent $25,089 $23,466 $23,817
Share in default 9 12 14
Share receiving assistance through IDR
*
21 21 17
Observations 917, 310 13,064 1,700
*
Income-driven repayment
Percent of applications originated for credit cards and auto loans, rural Louisiana vs.
national average.
Credit card
Success rate %
prole
u
N
p
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
S
Dee
Rural Louisiana
National average
72
61
40
20
6
26
67
58
36
14
8
17
pe
ea
Su
su
U
pr
r-p
P
r p
bp
bp
nsc
Credit score Credit sco
o
ri
ri
ri
ri
ri
or
Auto loans
Success rate %
re
le
0 20 40 60 80
me
me
me
me
me
ed
80
75
61
37
21
39
81
76
56
31
18
35
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
LOUISIANA
Auto loan application acceptance rates in Louisiana, by credit score.
Auto loans
Success rate %
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
LA majority-minority
census tracts
LA non-majority-minority
census tracts
National average
86
74
56
31
20
30
43
38
20
21
37
37
63
61
79
75
84
80
Credit score prole
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
MISSISSIPPI
Mississippi
Metro PPC
*
Metro, non-PPC
Rural PPC
Rural, non-PPC
*
persistent poverty county
Map of counties in Mississippi.
Consumer credit proles in the southern region in comparison: Mississippi.
Credit characteristic National average Mississippi Rural Mississippi
Percent with mortgage 29 24 20
Median balance on mortgage $165,975 $104,571 $79,971
Percent with credit card (cc) 80 69 64
Median balance on cc $1,207 $981 $885
Utilization rate (cc) 31 41 42
Percent with auto loan 42 45 44
Median balance on auto loan $13,249 $14,731 $14,593
Percent with student loan 18 20 18
Percent w/ medical debt collection 17 22 24
Median household income $63,929 $45,250 $40,648
Deep subprime 4 5 6
Subprime 22 31 33
Near prime 12 15 15
Prime 37 31 30
Super-prime 26 17 16
Observations 5,734,997 47,092 24,537
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
MISSISSIPPI
Below national average
1-50% above national average
More than 50% above
national average
Relative share of consumers with likely
medical debt collections removals from credit
report.
Share of rural southern consumers in Mississippi with delinquencies on multiple
types of cred
it.
Percent
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
40 35 36 12
59 41 30 29
47 40 15 37
56 37 25 38
35 29 17 30
Mortgage
Mortgage
(6%)
Medical
collection
Medical
collection
(24%)
(24%)
Student loan
Student
loan
(19%)
Auto loan
Auto loan
(20%)
Credit card
Credit card
Also had this kind of delinquency
Consumers who had
this kind of delinquency
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
MISSISSIPPI
Student loan borrowers in Mississippi.
Credit characteristic National average Mississippi Rural Mississippi
Median scheduled monthly student loan
payment
$192 $156 $146
Median annual household income $71,017 $48,955 $40,027
Median student loan debt balance to
income
43 55 55
Share delinquent 7 9 9
Median balance if delinquent $25,089 $21,743 $19,004
Share in default 9 15 16
Share receiving assistance through IDR
*
21 21 19
Observations 917, 310 8,433 3,960
*
Income-driven repayment
Percent of applications originated for credit cards and auto loans, rural Mississippi
vs. national average.
Credit card
Success rate %
prole
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
Sup
S
s
N
peeD
Rural Mississippi
National average
72
61
40
16
20
6
6
26
63
55
36
17
e
redit
er-
r
b
b
s
p
a
u
u
Un
CCredit score
Auto loans
Success rate %
role
0 20 40 60 80
prime
Prime
prime
prime
prime
cored
80
27
80
75
61
37
21
39
73
53
16
28
score
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
MISSISSIPPI
Auto loan application acceptance rates in Mississippi, by credit score.
Auto loans
Success rate %
Credit score prole
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
MS majority-minority
census tracts
MS non-majority-minority
census tracts
National average
82
69
46
24
13
25
35
38
19
21
33
37
60
61
75
75
81
80
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
NORTH CAROLINA
North Carolina
Map of counties
in North Carolina.
Metro PPC
*
Metro, non-PPC
Rural PPC
Rural, non-PPC
*
persistent poverty county
Consumer credit proles in the southern region in comparison:
North Carolina.
Credit characteristic National average North Carolina Rural North Carolina
Percent with mortgage 29 31 26
Median balance on mortgage $165,975 $144,421 $111,014
Percent with credit card (cc) 80 78 72
Median balance on cc $1,207 $1,167 $1,063
Utilization rate (cc) 31 33 36
Percent with auto loan 42 44 44
Median balance on auto loan $13,249 $13,566 $13,706
Percent with student loan 18 17 13
Percent w/ medical debt collection 17 23 29
Median household income $63,929 $54,476 $44,125
Deep subprime 4 4 5
Subprime 22 24 28
Near prime 12 13 14
Prime 37 35 32
Super-prime 26 24 21
Observations 5,734,997 181,678 37,422
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
NORTH CAROLINA
Share of rural southern consumers in North Carolina with delinquencies on multiple
types of credit.
Percent
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
38 31 33 9
59 38 33 45
48 37 12 51
58 34 17 51
37 29 14 43
Mortgage
Mortgage
(3%)
Medical
collection
Medical
collection
(29%)
(18%)
Student loan
Student
loan
(16%)
Auto loan
Auto loan
(18%)
Credit card
Credit card
Also had this kind of delinquency
Consumers who had
this kind of delinquency
Relative share of consumers with likely medical debt collections removals from
credit report.
Below national average
1-50% above national average
More than 50% above
national average
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
NORTH CAROLINA
Student loan borrowers in North Carolina.
Credit characteristic National average North Carolina
Rural North
Carolina
Median scheduled monthly student loan
payment
$192 $189 $168
Median annual household income $71,017 $62,031 $46,747
Median student loan debt balance to
income
43 48 46
Share delinquent 7 7 8
Median balance if delinquent $25,089 $25,528 $18,672
Share in default 9 9 11
Share receiving assistance through IDR
*
21 21 18
Observations 917, 310 28,132 4,353
*
Income-driven repayment
Percent of applications originated for credit cards and auto loans,
rural North Carolina vs. national average.
Credit card
Success rate %
prole
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
Su
N
ep
lin
p
e
s
U
d
a
u
u
e
S
De
Rural North Caro
69
72
57
61
37
40
18
20
4
6
16
26
a
CreCredit score i
r
r
t
p
-
b
b
s
s
r
p
P
p
p
p
cn
National average
Auto loans
Success rate %
core
ole
0 20 40 60 80
rime
rime
rime
rime
rime
ored
83
74
55
35
16
35
80
75
61
37
21
39
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
NORTH CAROLINA
Auto loan application acceptance rates in North Carolina, by credit score.
Auto loans
Success rate %
Credit score prole
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
NC majority-minority
census tracts
NC non-majority-minority
census tracts
National average
82
71
55
32
15
27
39
38
20
21
38
37
63
61
76
75
84
80
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
SOUTH CAROLINA
Map of counties in South Carolina.
South Carolina
Metro PPC
*
Metro, non-PPC
Rural PPC
Rural, non-PPC
*
persistent poverty county
Consumer credit proles in the southern region in comparison:
South Carolina.
Credit characteristic National average South Carolina Rural South Carolina
Percent with mortgage 29 29 20
Median balance on mortgage $165,975 $141,519 $90,124
Percent with credit card (cc) 80 73 62
Median balance on cc $1,207 $1,199 $969
Utilization rate (cc) 31 35 39
Percent with auto loan 42 42 38
Median balance on auto loan $13,249 $13,599 $13,369
Percent with student loan 18 19 17
Percent w/ medical debt collection 17 27 34
Median household income $63,929 $53,616 $38,582
Deep subprime 4 5 7
Subprime 22 28 36
Near prime 12 13 14
Prime 37 31 26
Super-prime 26 22 18
Observations 5,734,997 91,742 12,803
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
SOUTH CAROLINA
Share of rural southern consumers in South Carolina with delinquencies on multiple
types of credit.
Percent
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
35 31 35 9
51 33 57 43
45 41 20 55
54 41 16 53
37 32 15 44
Mortgage
Mortgage
(5%)
Medical
collection
Medical
collection
(34%)
(24%)
Student loan
Student
loan
(19%)
Auto loan
Auto loan
(19%)
Credit card
Credit card
Also had this kind of delinquency
Consumers who had
this kind of delinquency
Relative share of consumers
with likely medical debt
collections removals from
credit report.
Below national average
1-50% above national average
More than 50% above
national average
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
SOUTH CAROLINA
Student loan borrowers in South Carolina.
Credit characteristic National average South Carolina
Rural South
Carolina
Median scheduled monthly student loan
payment
$192 $189 $158
Median annual household income $71,017 $58,600 $40,517
Median student loan debt balance to
income
43 54 85
Share delinquent 7 8 10
Median balance if delinquent $25,089 $29,294 $34,472
Share in default 9 11 14
Share receiving assistance through IDR
*
21 22 20
Observations 917, 310 15,643 1,958
*
Income-driven repayment
Percent of applications originated for credit cards and auto loans,
rural South Carolina vs. national average.
Credit card
Success rate %
Credit score
prole
Cr
Su
N
ep
li
e
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
De
Rural South Caro
National averag
71
72
58
61
35
40
15
20
4
6
16
26
Auto loans
ed
pe
ea
Su
su
U
na
Success rate %
it score
prole
0 20 40 60 80
r-prime
Prime
r prime
bprime
bprime
nscored
81
71
53
27
16
32
80
75
61
37
21
39
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
SOUTH CAROLINA
Auto loan application acceptance rates in South Carolina, by credit score.
Auto loans
Success rate %
Credit score prole
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
SC majority-minority
census tracts
SC non-majority-minority
census tracts
National average
82
73
57
30
17
27
38
38
20
21
36
37
60
61
75
75
83
80
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
TENNESSEE
Tennessee
Map of counties in Tennessee.
Metro PPC
*
Metro, non-PPC Rural PPC Rural, non-PPC
*
persistent poverty county
Consumer credit proles in the southern region in comparison: Tennessee.
Credit characteristic National average Tennessee Rural Tennessee
Percent with mortgage 29 29 25
Median balance on mortgage $165,975 $138,944 $97,6 51
Percent with credit card (cc) 80 73 67
Median balance on cc $1,207 $1,188 $1,030
Utilization rate (cc) 31 34 35
Percent with auto loan 42 42 40
Median balance on auto loan $13,249 $14,206 $14,220
Percent with student loan 18 17 12
Percent w/ medical debt collection 17 23 27
Median household income $63,929 $52,951 $4 4,113
Deep subprime 4 5 6
Subprime 22 26 27
Near prime 12 13 13
Prime 37 34 32
Super-prime 26 23 21
Observations 5,734,997 118,451 26,118
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
TENNESSEE
Share of rural southern consumers in Tennessee with delinquencies on multiple
types of credit.
Percent
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
36 28 40 9
59 28 24 43
44 31 6 52
57 42 18 50
28 30 11 38
Mortgage
Mortgage
(3%)
Medical
collection
Medical
collection
(27%)
(20%)
Student loan
Student
loan
(11%)
Auto loan
Auto loan
(15%)
Credit card
Credit card
Also had this kind of delinquency
Consumers who had
this kind of delinquency
Relative share of consumers with likely medical debt collections removals from
credit report.
Below national average 1-50% above national average More than 50% above
national average
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
TENNESSEE
Student loan borrowers in Tennessee.
Credit characteristic National average Tennessee Rural Tennessee
Median scheduled monthly student loan
payment
$192 $182 $160
Median annual household income $71,017 $59,595 $44,521
Median student loan debt balance to
income
43 48 44
Share delinquent 7 8 7
Median balance if delinquent $25,089 $25,458 $19,636
Share in default 9 11 14
Share receiving assistance through IDR
*
21 22 20
Observations 917, 310 18,144 2,863
*
Income-driven repayment
Percent of applications originated for credit cards and auto loans,
rural Tennessee vs. national average.
Credit card
Success rate %
prole
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
S
ee
u
p
p
Ne
S
s
U
e
D
Rural Tennesse
National average
71
72
58
61
37
40
15
20
3
6
22
26
p
-
r
s
role
prime
Prime
prime
prime
prime
cored
r
a
ub
ub
n
e
Credit Credit score score
Auto loans
Success rate %
0 20 40 60 80
81
75
57
33
18
40
80
75
61
37
21
39
CONSUMER FINANCES IN RURAL AREAS OF THE SOUTHERN REGION
Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau
Learn more at consumernance.gov
TENNESSEE
Auto loan application acceptance rates in Tennessee, by credit score.
Auto loans
Success rate %
Credit score prole
0 20 40 60 80
Super-prime
Prime
Near prime
Subprime
Deep subprime
Unscored
TN majority-minority
census tracts
TN non-majority-minority
census tracts
National average
83
70
57
30
18
26
41
38
21
21
35
37
61
61
77
75
83
80