About one in five people in Perry County, Arkansas, has a disability
In Perry County, 21.1% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 84% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 79% of U.S. counties.
What drives Perry County's score
In Perry County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 83.9. People with a car or retail loan behind: 11.5%, August 2025, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 78.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Perry 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.
Perry County does better than most counties on one measure: renters paying half their income or more in rent (3.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 83.9 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.5% · August 202579th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind11.5% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a subprime credit score49.1% · second quarter of 202677th percentile
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- 78.9 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector32.0% · August 202579th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people216 · 202578th percentile
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- 69.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.8% · 202463rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line20.3% · 202465th percentile
- People with a disability21.1% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
- People without health insurance9.2% · 2020 to 202460th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,602 · 202471st percentile
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- 67.2 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202668th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.3% · 2020 to 202465th percentile
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- 36.4 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 rent3.6% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income22.6% · fiscal year 202767th 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 Perry 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 Perry County, 21.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Perry County
Arkansas
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Perry County had its largest rise, from 21.6% in 2004 to 29.9% in 2009.
In Perry County, benefit checks' share of income has grown since 1969, reaching 31.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Perry County, Arkansas, benefit checks' share of income rose by about a third from 1969 to 2024, reaching 31.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Perry County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 11.4% in 2012 to 13.7% in 2013.
The share of households in Perry County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 8.7%
Biggest drop: 2023 to 2024, reaching 8.7%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Perry County, Arkansas.
How Perry County has changed
Perry County's population had its largest rise, from 8,809 in 1994 to 10,097 in 1999.
Perry County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 10,251
High on the chart: 10,443 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Perry County, Arkansas.
The number of jobs located in Perry County had its largest rise, from 1,197 in 2005 to 1,325 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Perry County was at its highest on the chart in 2010 and has since fallen by about a fifth
High on the chart: 1,325 in 2010. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Perry County, Arkansas.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.2% | 2025 4.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.2% | 2024 14.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,913 | 2024 $59,602 |
The table uses 4.6% for 2025; the score uses 4.5% 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 Perry County's history
1840
Formed December 18, 1840. Wikipedia
2005
A tornado in November 2005 did $4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 10,445. The 2020 Census counted 10,019, 96% of the peak. Census Bureau
2011
A flash flood in April 2011 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A flood in May 2011 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1969
25 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Perry County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Perry County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Perry County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Perry County ranks 2nd of the seven; Garland County is highest, at 34.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Garland County, AR | 83 | 14.2% | 34.7% |
| Pulaski County, AR | 83 | 16.0% | 20.4% |
| Perry County, AR | 79 | 14.8% | 31.1% |
| Conway County, AR | 71 | 14.3% | 29.8% |
| Yell County, AR | 58 | 15.9% | 30.7% |
| Faulkner County, AR | 52 | 12.5% | 22.7% |
| Saline County, AR | 30 | 9.8% | 23.3% |
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 Perry County the poorest county in Arkansas?
No, Perry County's poverty rate was 14.8% in 2024, 57th 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, Perry County ranks 43rd of 75 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Perry 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.
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 Perry County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.