Californians Falling Behind on Bill Payments Amid Soaring Debt Levels

Data show that Californians have accrued the highest per capita debt levels since 2008 as a growing number fall behind on their bills.

A neighborhood of single family homes in Los Angeles, Calif., on July 30, 2021. Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images

Californians are falling behind on their bills amid the highest per capita debt levels since 2008, according to debt statistics by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York in its most recent Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit.

In the first quarter of 2024, household debt per capita in California peaked at $86,940 before decreasing slightly in the fourth quarter to $86,130. The average U.S. per capita debt was only $50,540 in the fourth quarter.