In Marin County, California, benefit checks make up only 7 cents of every dollar of income
In Marin County, 7.4% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 80% of U.S. counties.
What drives Marin County's score
In Marin County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 97.0. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 4.0. About one in four people (23.2%, Q2 2026) has a subprime credit score, a lower share than in 98% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Marin 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, Marin County is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (30.5%, fiscal year 2027) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (29.7%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 97.0 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 rent29.7% · 2020 to 202496th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income30.5% · fiscal year 202797th percentile
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- 41.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202651st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.7% · 2020 to 202431st percentile
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- 8.9 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.9% · 202421st percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.6% · 202411th percentile
- People with a disability10.0% · 2020 to 20244th percentile
- People without health insurance3.8% · 2020 to 20246th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$145,395 · 20240th percentile
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- 8.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector8.2% · August 20251st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people60.1 · 202514th percentile
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- 4.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind2.2% · August 20254th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.0% · August 20255th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score23.2% · second quarter of 20261st 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 Marin 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 Marin County, 23.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Marin County
California
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Marin County, benefit checks' share of income has risen by about half since 1969, reaching 7.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about eight times as much as benefit checks
In Marin County, California, benefit checks' share of income rose by about half from 1969 to 2024, reaching 7.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Marin County getting SNAP food aid tripled to 5.5%, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2022 to 2023, reaching 4.8%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Marin County, California.
How Marin County has changed
Marin County's population had its largest rise, from 250,862 in 2009 to 262,261 in 2014.
Marin County's population rose by about a quarter from 1969 to 2024, reaching 256,400
High on the chart: 263,129 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Marin County, California.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Marin County rose 13% from 1990 to 2025, with most of the change between 1995 and 2000
High on the chart: 112,454 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Marin County, California.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.5% | 2025 4.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 5.5% | 2024 9.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $47,104 | 2024 $145,395 |
The table uses 4.2% for 2025; the score uses 4.0% 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 Marin County's history
1850
Marin County is one of the original 27 counties of California, created February 18, 1850. Wikipedia
1999
Heavy rain in February 1999 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2005
A flood in December 2005 did $108 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2006
A flood in January 2006 did $108 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2014
A flash flood in December 2014 did $4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 262,321, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1964
26 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Marin County, 20 of them for flooding. FEMA
Marin County beside its neighbors
Of the two counties that border Marin County, one scores higher. Of the group, Marin County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Sonoma County gets the largest, at 17.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sonoma County, CA | 29 | 8.4% | 17.2% |
| Marin County, CA | 19 | 9.9% | 7.4% |
| San Francisco County, CA | 15 | 11.3% | 9.1% |
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 Marin County the poorest county in California?
No, Marin County's poverty rate was 9.9% in 2024, 44th 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, Marin County ranks 54th of 58 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Marin 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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Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Bay Area Legal Aid
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 Marin County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.