In La Paz County, Arizona, benefit checks brought in more money than paychecks in 2024
In 2024, 43 cents of every dollar of income here came from benefit checks, including Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and veterans' benefits. That was a larger share than across the country.
More distressed than 76% of U.S. counties.
What drives La Paz County's score
In La Paz County, income and the safety net weighs most: the score for income and the safety net is 83.9. About one in four people (23.2%, 2020 to 2024) has a disability, a higher share than in 92% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 81.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in La Paz 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.
La Paz County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (13.4%, 2020 to 2024) and people with a credit card behind (4.9%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 83.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line18.7% · 202482nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line25.6% · 202483rd percentile
- People with a disability23.2% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
- People without health insurance10.7% · 2020 to 202470th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$51,062 · 202489th percentile
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- 81.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year6.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 2026top 5%
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.9% · 2020 to 202468th percentile
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- 57.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.9% · August 202539th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.8% · August 202559th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score47.9% · second quarter of 202674th percentile
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- 52.4 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 rent13.4% · 2020 to 202424th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.4% · fiscal year 202780th percentile
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- 51.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector26.8% · August 202563rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people107.7 · 202539th 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 La Paz 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 La Paz County, 43.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
La Paz County
Arizona
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in La Paz County had its largest rise, from 14.4% in 1988 to 24.7% in 1993.
In La Paz County, benefit checks overtook pay in 2024, a bigger share of income than across Arizona
In La Paz County, Arizona, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1983 to 2024, reaching 43.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in La Paz County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 16.4% in 2016 to 13.7% in 2017.
The share of households in La Paz County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2012 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 11.0% 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, La Paz County, Arizona.
How La Paz County has changed
La Paz County's population had its largest rise, from 15,180 in 1993 to 18,859 in 1998.
La Paz County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2008 and is down 17% since
High on the chart: 20,555 in 2008. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, La Paz County, Arizona.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in La Paz County rose by about half to 6,695, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 6,695. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, La Paz County, Arizona.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.8% | 2025 6.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1993 26.4% | 2024 18.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1993 $20,354 | 2024 $51,062 |
The table uses 6.3% for 2025; the score uses 6.6% 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 La Paz County's history
2000
A flash flood in October 2000 did $6.2 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flash flood in August 2008 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 20,489. The 2020 Census counted 16,557, 81% of the peak. Census Bureau
2010
A flood in January 2010 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1983
7 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered La Paz County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
La Paz County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border La Paz County, in Arizona and California, three score higher. Of the group, La Paz County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (43.0%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Imperial County, CA | 89 | 18.8% | 30.0% |
| Mohave County, AZ | 83 | 14.6% | 36.3% |
| San Bernardino County, CA | 81 | 12.6% | 23.6% |
| La Paz County, AZ | 76 | 18.7% | 43.0% |
| Yuma County, AZ | 71 | 16.6% | 28.2% |
| Riverside County, CA | 70 | 9.8% | 21.3% |
| Maricopa County, AZ | 56 | 10.4% | 16.1% |
| Yavapai County, AZ | 51 | 9.8% | 31.4% |
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 La Paz County the poorest county in Arizona?
No, La Paz County's poverty rate was 18.7% in 2024, 5th highest of 15 in Arizona (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Apache County, at 29.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, La Paz County ranks 6th of 15 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in La Paz 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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Community Legal Services (CLS)
Legal aid
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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 La Paz 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 La Paz County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.