About one in three people with a credit file in Chambers County, Alabama, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Chambers County, 35.9% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 87% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 90% of U.S. counties.
What drives Chambers County's score
In Chambers County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 94.0. Bankruptcy filings ran at 786.4 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 99% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 91.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Chambers 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.
Chambers County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (2.6%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (18.1%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 94.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector35.9% · August 202587th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people786.4 · 202599th percentile
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- 91.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind10.8% · August 202596th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.7% · August 202580th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score59.9% · second quarter of 202696th percentile
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- 83.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line18.9% · 202483rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line28.4% · 202489th percentile
- People with a disability20.2% · 2020 to 202481st percentile
- People without health insurance11.0% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$51,067 · 202489th percentile
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- 67.8 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 rent18.1% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income25.6% · fiscal year 202786th percentile
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- 42.1 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 working26.3% · 2020 to 202478th percentile
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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 Chambers 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 Chambers County, 20.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Chambers County
Alabama
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Chambers County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, but pay from work still brings in 40% more than benefit checks in 2024
In Chambers County, Alabama, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 35.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Chambers County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 13.8% in 2011 to 16.5% in 2012.
The share of households in Chambers County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen to 16.3%
Low on the chart: 12.0% 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, Chambers County, Alabama.
How Chambers County has changed
Chambers County's population had its largest drop, from 39,073 in 1984 to 37,208 in 1989.
Chambers County's population fell 11% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 39,303 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Chambers County, Alabama.
The number of jobs located in Chambers County had its largest drop, from 10,982 in 2005 to 7,479 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Chambers County fell by about a third from 1990 to 2025, reaching 9,358, with its low point on the chart in 2010
Low on the chart: 7,479 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Chambers County, Alabama.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.2% | 2025 2.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 15.6% | 2024 18.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,277 | 2024 $51,067 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Chambers County's history
1832
Established December 18, 1832. Wikipedia
1940
The county's largest recorded population was the 1940 Census count of 42,146. The 2020 Census counted 34,772, 83% of the peak. Census Bureau
1970
A tornado in March 1970 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1980
Four mill villages joined to form city of Valley. Wikipedia
1989
A tornado in March 1989 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in April 2011 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1970
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Chambers County, 8 of them for flooding. FEMA
Chambers County beside its neighbors
Chambers County scores higher than all five counties that border it, in Alabama and Georgia. For the share of income from benefit checks, Chambers County ranks 2nd of the six; Randolph County is highest, at 36.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chambers County, AL | 90 | 18.9% | 35.7% |
| Troup County, GA | 86 | 14.9% | 27.4% |
| Randolph County, AL | 83 | 18.6% | 36.1% |
| Tallapoosa County, AL | 71 | 17.0% | 31.2% |
| Lee County, AL | 61 | 16.9% | 19.7% |
| Harris County, GA | 31 | 8.8% | 21.0% |
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 Chambers County the poorest county in Alabama?
No, Chambers County's poverty rate was 18.9% in 2024, 26th 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, Chambers County ranks 22nd of 67 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Chambers 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.
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Legal Services Alabama
Legal aid
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Alabama State Bar Lawyer Referral Service
Lawyer referral
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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 Chambers 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 Chambers County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.