In Blount County, Alabama, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in four dollars of the typical household's income
In Blount County, 23.8% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is higher than in 76% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 60% of U.S. counties.
What drives Blount County's score
In Blount County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 74.6. Bankruptcy filings ran at 242.4 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 84% of U.S. counties. Housing costs come next, at 59.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Blount County: jobs, late payments on loans, income and the safety net, collections and bankruptcy, and housing costs. Each part is scored from 0 to 100, and a higher score means worse off than other counties.
Blount County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (2.6%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and people below the poverty line (11.7%, 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 74.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector27.3% · August 202565th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people242.4 · 202584th percentile
-
- 59.1 of 100
Housing costs
Renters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent16.7% · 2020 to 202441st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.8% · fiscal year 202776th percentile
-
- 59.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.9% · August 202571st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.8% · August 202543rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score43.3% · second quarter of 202661st percentile
-
- 50.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.7% · 202437th percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.9% · 202438th percentile
- People with a disability17.5% · 2020 to 202463rd percentile
- People without health insurance10.3% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$69,371 · 202442nd percentile
-
- 40.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20265th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working25.2% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
-
Sources: Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey; U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents and Census income; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. County Distress Index by American Default Research, from data through Sep 2026.
Where the money in Blount County comes from
Benefit checks are Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid paid on people's behalf, veterans' benefits, and food and income support, so a high share usually means an older population, low pay, or both. In Blount County, 18.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Blount County
Alabama
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Blount County had its largest rise, from 18.6% in 2004 to 23.9% in 2009.
In Blount County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 25.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Blount County, Alabama, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Blount County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 9.2% in 2010 to 11.3% in 2011.
The share of households in Blount County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen to 12.3%
Low on the chart: 7.7% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Blount County, Alabama.
How Blount County has changed
Blount County's population had its largest rise, from 42,520 in 1994 to 50,237 in 1999.
Blount County's population more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 60,163, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2009 to 2014, reaching 58,045. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Blount County, Alabama.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Blount County rose by about a quarter to 9,229, the highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 8,776. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Blount County, Alabama.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.4% | 2025 2.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.4% | 2024 11.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,035 | 2024 $69,371 |
The table uses 2.4% for 2025; the score uses 2.6% for the latest year (Oct 2025 to Sep 2026), both from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Blount County's history
1818
Created by Alabama Territorial Legislature February 6, 1818, formed from land ceded by Creek Nation August 9, 1814. Wikipedia
1941
POW camp operated outside Oneonta during World War II. Wikipedia
1957
A tornado in November 1957 killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2002
Lightning in July 2002 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in April 2011 did $19.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in April 2011 did $4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 59,134, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
-
Since 1974
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Blount County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Blount County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Blount County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Blount County ranks 6th of the seven; Etowah County is highest, at 35.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Etowah County, AL | 85 | 17.2% | 35.2% |
| Jefferson County, AL | 82 | 14.2% | 17.6% |
| Walker County, AL | 75 | 18.1% | 29.9% |
| Blount County, AL | 60 | 11.7% | 25.1% |
| Marshall County, AL | 58 | 15.9% | 26.0% |
| Cullman County, AL | 58 | 14.1% | 25.7% |
| St. Clair County, AL | 48 | 9.7% | 25.8% |
Distress score: American Default Research, County Distress Index, data through Sep 2026; each county scored against all 3,144. Poverty rate: Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, 2024. Benefit checks: Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2024. Neighbors share a border, from Census county maps.
Is Blount County the poorest county in Alabama?
No, Blount County's poverty rate was 11.7% in 2024, 61st highest of 67 in Alabama (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Bullock County, at 36.7%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Blount County ranks 54th of 67 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Blount County
Housing counselors approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development work at nonprofit agencies. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau describes free foreclosure-avoidance counseling, including help with mortgage-company conversations and available options Source CFPB.
-
Legal Services Alabama
Legal aid
-
Alabama State Bar Lawyer Referral Service
Lawyer referral
-
HUD-approved housing counselors
Our help directory lists 1,010 agencies approved for foreclosure counseling, by state.
The score, its 14 measures and their sources, in one file. Free to use with credit to American Default Research.
Download the CSV for Blount County · Every U.S. county (CSV)
Sources and method
- American Default Research · County Distress Index Data through Sep 2026, built from Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; HUD Fair Market Rents and Census income; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. The County Distress Index is American Default Research's own calculation; the Urban Institute does not produce or endorse it. Our methodology
- Urban Institute · Debt in America Breno Braga, Signe-Mary McKernan, Samantha Atherton, and Kassandra Martinchek, "Debt in America," last updated November 20, 2025, https://datacatalog.urban.org/dataset/debt-america-2025. Licensed under ODC-By 1.0.
- Rent on a two-bedroom and household income The rent share compares HUD fair market rent for fiscal year 2027 with Census Bureau median household income for 2024. The page calls this the typical household's income.
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4) · income shares Where the money in Blount County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.