When it comes to paying off credit cards, there’s good news … and there’s New Jersey

When it comes to credit card debt, the more that’s paid off, the better. So, the news isn’t so good for two New Jersey cities.

That’s because Atlantic City and Camden rank in the Top 5 cities in the country with the smallest credit card debt paydown, with Atlantic City at No. 1 and Camden at No. 5, according to personal-finance website WalletHub’s recent Credit Card Debt Study.

Consumers have paid off $38 million of their $1 trillion in credit card debt during 2019’s first quarter, according to WalletHub’s study. The website predicts a $70 billion net increase in debt during the year.

WalletHub compared over 2,500 cities across the country based on how much credit card debt residents have and how their balances changed during the first quarter.

Cities with the biggest debt paydown:

  1. Ewa Beach, Hawaii;
  2. Darien, Connecticut;
  3. Dix Hills, New York;
  4. Lake Forest, Illinois;
  5. Southlake, Texas;
  6. Westport, Connecticut;
  7. Collegeville, Pennsylvania;
  8. Calabasas, California;
  9. Beverly Hills, California;
  10. Scarsdale, New York.

Cities with the smallest debt paydown:

  1. Atlantic City;
  2. Benton Harbor, Michigan;
  3. Bastrop, Louisiana;
  4. Dunnellon, Florida;
  5. Camden;
  6. Greenville, Ohio;
  7. Forest Park, Georgia;
  8. Sun City Center, Florida;
  9. Laguna Woods, California;
  10. Darlington, South Carolina.