In Yavapai County, Arizona, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in four dollars of the typical household's income
In Yavapai County, 25.1% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is higher than in 83% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 51% of U.S. counties.
What drives Yavapai County's score
In Yavapai County, housing costs weigh most: the score for housing costs is 76.5. Jobs come next, at 65.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Yavapai 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.
Yavapai County does better than most counties on two measures: people below the poverty line (9.8%, 2024) and people with a subprime credit score (33.7%, Q2 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 76.5 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent21.4% · 2020 to 202469th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income25.1% · fiscal year 202783rd percentile
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- 65.0 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202675th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.4% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
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- 43.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.8% · 202420th percentile
- Children below the poverty line12.6% · 202425th percentile
- People with a disability18.6% · 2020 to 202471st percentile
- People without health insurance10.1% · 2020 to 202466th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$74,247 · 202430th percentile
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- 41.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector18.1% · August 202531st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people127.7 · 202550th percentile
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- 28.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.1% · August 202527th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.0% · August 202532nd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score33.7% · second quarter of 202624th 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 Yavapai 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 Yavapai County, 34.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Yavapai County
Arizona
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Yavapai County had its largest rise, from 22.3% in 2004 to 29.2% in 2009.
In Yavapai County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 31.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a quarter more than benefit checks
In Yavapai County, Arizona, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 31.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Yavapai County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 7.8% in 2010 to 9.9% in 2011.
The share of households in Yavapai County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 6.1% 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, Yavapai County, Arizona.
How Yavapai County has changed
Yavapai County's population had its largest rise, from 131,986 in 1994 to 162,943 in 1999.
Yavapai County's population grew to about seven times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 252,013, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2009 to 2014, reaching 216,551. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Yavapai County, Arizona.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Yavapai County more than doubled to 71,329, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 39,263. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Yavapai County, Arizona.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.5% | 2025 4.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.3% | 2024 9.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,249 | 2024 $74,247 |
The table uses 4.1% for 2025; the score uses 4.8% 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 Yavapai County's history
1999
Hail in September 1999 did $18 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
A flash flood in August 2004 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2005
Hail in October 2005 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
A flash flood in August 2013 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 236,209, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1977
13 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Yavapai County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Yavapai County beside its neighbors
All five counties that border Yavapai County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Yavapai County ranks 4th of the six; Gila County is highest, at 43.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mohave County, AZ | 83 | 14.6% | 36.3% |
| Gila County, AZ | 80 | 19.1% | 43.0% |
| La Paz County, AZ | 76 | 18.7% | 43.0% |
| Coconino County, AZ | 66 | 15.2% | 20.8% |
| 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 Yavapai County the poorest county in Arizona?
No, Yavapai County's poverty rate was 9.8% in 2024, 14th 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, Yavapai County ranks 14th of 15 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Yavapai 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 Yavapai 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 Yavapai County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.