About one in seven people with a credit file in Inyo County, California, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Inyo County, 15.3% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 80% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 70% of U.S. counties.
What drives Inyo County's score
In Inyo County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 57.2. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 18.6. Bankruptcy filings ran at 64.8 per 100,000 people (2025), lower than in 83% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Inyo 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.
Even so, Inyo County is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (24.0%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 57.2 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 rent15.9% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.0% · fiscal year 202777th percentile
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- 52.0 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 202667th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working18.6% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
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- 36.4 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.2% · 202432nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.8% · 202437th percentile
- People with a disability14.7% · 2020 to 202437th percentile
- People without health insurance7.0% · 2020 to 202442nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$73,402 · 202432nd percentile
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- 27.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.1% · August 202511th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.4% · August 202523rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score39.2% · second quarter of 202646th percentile
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- 18.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.3% · August 202520th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people64.8 · 202516th 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 Inyo 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 Inyo County, 24.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Inyo County
California
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Inyo County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 26.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Inyo County, California, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 26.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Inyo County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 6.1% in 2012 to 7.5% in 2013.
The share of households in Inyo County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2017 and has since fallen to 8.5%
Low on the chart: 3.6% 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, Inyo County, California.
How Inyo County has changed
Inyo County's population had its largest rise, from 15,417 in 1969 to 16,653 in 1974.
Inyo County's population rose by about a fifth from 1969 to 2024, reaching 18,485
High on the chart: 18,881 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Inyo County, California.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Inyo County rose 6% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 2020 and 2025
High on the chart: 7,829 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Inyo County, California.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.1% | 2025 4.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.9% | 2024 11.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,519 | 2024 $73,402 |
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 Inyo County's history
1866
Inyo County was formed in 1866 out of the territory of the unorganized Coso County. Wikipedia
2004
A flash flood in August 2004 did $20 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flash flood in July 2008 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A flash flood in October 2015 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 19,016, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2023
A flash flood in August 2023 did $500 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1967
15 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Inyo County, 10 of them for flooding. FEMA
Inyo County beside its neighbors
Of the eight counties that border Inyo County, in California and Nevada, seven score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Inyo County ranks 5th of the nine; Nye County is highest, at 38.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nye County, NV | 90 | 13.8% | 38.2% |
| Kern County, CA | 88 | 18.6% | 24.0% |
| Clark County, NV | 87 | 12.5% | 17.5% |
| Tulare County, CA | 85 | 19.9% | 27.9% |
| Esmeralda County, NV | 84 | 14.8% | 27.2% |
| Fresno County, CA | 83 | 18.2% | 27.2% |
| San Bernardino County, CA | 81 | 12.6% | 23.6% |
| Inyo County, CA | 29 | 11.2% | 26.1% |
| Mono County, CA | 11 | 9.8% | 12.7% |
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 Inyo County the poorest county in California?
No, Inyo County's poverty rate was 11.2% in 2024, 40th highest of 58 in California (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Trinity County, at 23.0%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Inyo County ranks 50th of 58 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Inyo 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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California Indian Legal Services (Bishop office)
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 Inyo County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.