Charge!

San Antonians saddled with less credit card debt than Texans in other big cities

We give San Antonio some credit for this ranking.

Photo by Image Source/Getty Images

If you’ve felt strapped during the pandemic and had to rely more heavily on credit cards to get by, you’re not the only one. But when it comes to the Alamo City’s share of people with crushing credit card debt, San Antonians seem to be more in charge than some other Texans.

A report released by personal finance platform LendingTree shows San Antonio rose from No. 27 to No. 26 among the 100 largest U.S. metro areas for the share of people (18.4 percent) with credit card balances totaling at least $10,000. LendingTree says 1.2 percent in San Antonio owe at least $50,000.

Nearby Austin ranks sixth, the highest ranking for any Texas city, with 20.8 percent of people carrying credit card balances of at least $10,000, and 1.7 percent of cardholders in Austin owing at least $50,000. Austin jumped 20 spots in the ranking compared with its 26th-place showing in LendingTree’s 2019 report.

Here’s how other Texas metros ranked:

Houston climbed from No. 32 two years ago to No. 10 this year. According to LendingTree, 20 percent of cardholders in the metro have credit card debt of at least $10,000, and 1.6 percent have credit card debt of at least $50,000.
Dallas-Fort Worth moved from No. 33 to No. 18. Today, 19.2 percent of cardholders in the metro have debt totaling at least $10,000 and 1.5 percent have credit card debt totaling at least $50,000.

LendingTree offers perhaps a partial explanation for the increase in five-digit credit card balances among Texas metros: “While the saying goes that ‘everything is bigger in Texas,’ that hasn’t traditionally been the case with salaries in the Lone Star State. The big metros in Texas have generally trailed behind the big coastal metros in that measure.”

Bridgeport, Connecticut, holds the No. 1 spot for the largest share of cardholders (24.3 percent) with at least $10,000 in debt.

Follow the Marigold Road

Colors change at San Antonio Botanical Garden with new fall events and 10,000 marigolds

Azul Barrientos San Antonio Botanical Garden

San Antonio Botanical Garden/sabot.org

Azul Barrientos will help usher in the new season at "Marigolds en Maravilla" on October 8.

It may not feel like the seasons are changing yet, but plants notice that kind of thing. As the days get shorter, the rhythms of life at San Antonio Botanical Garden chance, and locals are invited in to feel the shift with new programming.

Starting off with pure excess and sunny fall joy, the garden will be showing off a path of 10,000 marigolds throughout the month of October at "Marigolds en Maravilla." The Oz-like exhibit draws attention to a fall bloom very significant in Hispanic cultures, and perhaps most associated in San Antonio with Día de los Muertos. (The garden celebrates this in its own event on October 21.)

A special event will introduce visitors to the golden display on October 8 with a live performance by local singer-songwriter Azul Barrientos. Guests can take part in marigold printmaking, a community chalk mural, guided tours, marigold planting, and even tasting the flowers. A separate tea party on the same day will teach visitors to make cake and tea out of marigolds; a craft event on October 11 weaves the blooms into headpieces; and more of the flowers turn up in other events across the calendar.

Of course, a family pumpkin patch was a must-have, and there were some opportunities to taste those too, but they have since sold out. Less expectedly, orchids are also prominently featured with their own tour on October 8. According to the garden, the fall is a "fabulous time" to see orchids in bloom.

Two exhibitions will be departing the garden soon: the "Imaginary Worlds: Once Upon a Time" topiary collection, which brought the park even more to life with fantasy creatures; and the "Frida Kahlo Oasis," which replicated some elements of the famous artist's home and displayed plants as she would have.

Other events to look out for this October include:

Fall Brews & Blooms: Sunday, October 15 — Guests will assemble on the lawn to enjoy local and regional craft beers and live music.
Bootanica: Saturday, October 21 — Halloween comes early at the garden, where families are invited to dress in costume, trick-or-treat, and try hands-on activities taught by Garden Educators. The event is free with the price of admission.
Sinister Soiree: Friday, October 27 — This adults-only experience meet-and-greet connects visitors with pop culture villains, teasing a heavy Disney focus in the event imagery. Guests will "sip and sing" along with live performances.
5th Annual Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo Fest: Saturday, October 28 — At the intersection of fantasy and Halloween, this less-spooky event focuses on the candy and dress-up with a "fairytale, superhero, and villain" twist, assisted by live characters, live music, and even live animals.

Next up after the fall programming will be the famous Lightscape holiday path, with more than one million lights and a few upgrades from past years. But let's enjoy fall before rushing forward to winter quite yet.

More information about San Antonio Botanical Garden and its extensive fall programming is available at sabot.org.

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