About one in four people in Ouachita County, Arkansas, has a disability
In Ouachita County, 26.8% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 97% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 90% of U.S. counties.
What drives Ouachita County's score
In Ouachita County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 89.1. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 87.8.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Ouachita 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.
Ouachita County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (19.6%, fiscal year 2027) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (16.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 89.1 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind11.0% · August 202597th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.5% · August 202578th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score56.1% · second quarter of 202691st percentile
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- 87.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector39.2% · August 202592nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people234 · 202582nd percentile
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- 86.7 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 202677th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working34.2% · 2020 to 202495th percentile
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- 76.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line17.6% · 202478th percentile
- Children below the poverty line24.8% · 202481st percentile
- People with a disability26.8% · 2020 to 202497th percentile
- People without health insurance6.9% · 2020 to 202441st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$55,644 · 202481st percentile
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- 38.9 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 rent16.5% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.6% · fiscal year 202737th 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 Ouachita 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 Ouachita County, 21.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Ouachita County
Arkansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Ouachita County had its largest rise, from 12.9% in 1969 to 18.5% in 1974.
In Ouachita County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 33.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Ouachita County, Arkansas, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 33.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Ouachita County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 19.3% in 2015 to 17.2% in 2016.
The share of households in Ouachita County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 13.2% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Ouachita County, Arkansas.
How Ouachita County has changed
Ouachita County's population had its largest drop, from 28,954 in 1999 to 27,107 in 2004.
Ouachita County's population fell by about a third to 21,684, the lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 31,745 in 1984. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Ouachita County, Arkansas.
The number of jobs located in Ouachita County had its largest drop, from 8,189 in 2000 to 7,460 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in Ouachita County fell 28% from 1990 to 2020, then turned up in 2025
High on the chart: 9,064 in 1990. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Ouachita County, Arkansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 13.8% | 2025 5.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 18.0% | 2024 17.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,779 | 2024 $55,644 |
The table uses 5.0% 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 Ouachita County's history
1842
Formed on November 29, 1842. Wikipedia
1950
The county's largest recorded population was the 1950 Census count of 33,051. The 2020 Census counted 22,650, 69% of the peak. Census Bureau
1979
A tornado in April 1979 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1982
A tornado in December 1982 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flood in October 2008 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
A flood in May 2009 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1979
28 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Ouachita County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Ouachita County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Ouachita County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Ouachita County ranks 4th of the seven; Dallas County is highest, at 42.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clark County, AR | 93 | 20.4% | 33.7% |
| Nevada County, AR | 91 | 21.4% | 42.1% |
| Ouachita County, AR | 90 | 17.6% | 33.1% |
| Dallas County, AR | 89 | 19.3% | 42.7% |
| Union County, AR | 89 | 16.8% | 28.2% |
| Columbia County, AR | 87 | 20.4% | 32.2% |
| Calhoun County, AR | 61 | 14.6% | 30.5% |
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 Ouachita County the poorest county in Arkansas?
No, Ouachita County's poverty rate was 17.6% in 2024, 40th highest of 75 in Arkansas (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Lee County, at 41.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Ouachita County ranks 22nd of 75 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Ouachita 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 Aid of Arkansas
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 Ouachita 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 Ouachita County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.