About one in five people in Tallapoosa County, Alabama, has a disability
In Tallapoosa County, 21.2% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 85% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 71% of U.S. counties.
What drives Tallapoosa County's score
In Tallapoosa County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 83.5. Bankruptcy filings ran at 565.4 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 99% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 73.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Tallapoosa 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.
Tallapoosa County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.5%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (14.9%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 83.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.0% · August 202568th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people565.4 · 202599th percentile
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- 73.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line17.0% · 202475th percentile
- Children below the poverty line25.2% · 202482nd percentile
- People with a disability21.2% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
- People without health insurance8.4% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$60,578 · 202469th percentile
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- 67.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.7% · August 202554th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.2% · August 202563rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score51.1% · second quarter of 202682nd percentile
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- 53.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202627th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.4% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
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- 34.7 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 rent14.9% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.7% · fiscal year 202738th 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 Tallapoosa 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 Tallapoosa County, 23.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Tallapoosa County
Alabama
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Tallapoosa County had its largest rise, from 20.7% in 1999 to 25.3% in 2004.
In Tallapoosa County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 31.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Tallapoosa County, Alabama, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 31.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Tallapoosa County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop in the last span, from 16.4% in 2023 to 13.3% in 2024.
The share of households in Tallapoosa County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2018 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 9.4% 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, Tallapoosa County, Alabama.
How Tallapoosa County has changed
Tallapoosa County's population had its largest rise, from 36,526 in 1974 to 39,166 in 1979.
Tallapoosa County's population rose 16% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 41,831 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Tallapoosa County, Alabama.
The number of jobs located in Tallapoosa County had its largest drop, from 14,818 in 2005 to 12,369 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Tallapoosa County fell by about a quarter from 1990 to 2020, reaching 12,352, then turned up in 2025
High on the chart: 17,993 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Tallapoosa County, Alabama.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.5% | 2025 3.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 15.7% | 2024 17.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,509 | 2024 $60,578 |
The table uses 3.1% for 2025; the score uses 3.5% 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 Tallapoosa County's history
1832
Created in 1832 from lands ceded by the Creek Indians in the Treaty of Cusseta. Established on December 18, 1832. Wikipedia
1992
A tornado in November 1992 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 41,616. The 2020 Census counted 41,311, 99% of the peak. Census Bureau
2011
A tornado in April 2011 did $115 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
A tornado in March 2012 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Tallapoosa County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Tallapoosa County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Tallapoosa County, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Tallapoosa County ranks 6th of the eight; Randolph County is highest, at 36.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Macon County, AL | 97 | 30.8% | 35.7% |
| Chambers County, AL | 90 | 18.9% | 35.7% |
| Randolph County, AL | 83 | 18.6% | 36.1% |
| Coosa County, AL | 77 | 19.1% | 36.0% |
| Clay County, AL | 76 | 17.4% | 34.6% |
| Tallapoosa County, AL | 71 | 17.0% | 31.2% |
| Lee County, AL | 61 | 16.9% | 19.7% |
| Elmore County, AL | 44 | 11.1% | 24.5% |
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 Tallapoosa County the poorest county in Alabama?
No, Tallapoosa County's poverty rate was 17.0% in 2024, 40th 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, Tallapoosa County ranks 45th of 67 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Tallapoosa 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 Tallapoosa 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 Tallapoosa County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.