Plumas County, California

County Distress Index: Elevated · 58.6 | 19,131 people · 27th most distressed in California
American Default Research

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Plumas County, CA registers elevated household financial distress with a score of 58.6 — 926th nationally out of 3144 counties. The primary driver is Employment & Wages, where unemployment is elevated, wages are low relative to housing costs, and business formation lags. Within California, it ranks 27th of 58 counties. Among its 6 neighboring counties, 5 show more distress.

The Numbers Behind the Score

The CDI measures five domains of financial distress. Plumas County's primary driver is Employment & Wages at 86.1 — worse than roughly 86% of U.S. counties.

Employment & Wages Primary driver 86.1
Unemployment Rate 95
Wage-to-Rent Ratio 73
Business Formation Rate 91
Housing Cost Burden 64.2
Rent-Burdened (30%+) 52
Severely Rent-Burdened (50%+) 39
Mortgage-Burdened (30%+) 95
Homeownership Rate 48
Rent-to-Income Ratio 87
Income & Poverty 62.3
Poverty Rate 43
Income vs. State Median 92
Child Poverty Rate 52
Community Vulnerability 52.2
Uninsured Rate 18
Disability Rate 87
Debt & Delinquency 28.2
Debt in Collections 29
Medical Debt 7
Student Loan Delinquency 45
Auto Loan Delinquency 48
Credit Card Delinquency 25
Bankruptcy Filing Rate 16

Scores are percentile-based: 50 = national median, higher = more distressed. The median line is shown on each bar.

Neighbors and Peers

How Plumas County compares to its 6 neighboring counties and population peers.

Neighboring Counties

County Score Zone vs. Plumas County
Plumas County, CA 58.6 Elevated —
Butte County, CA 70.7 Serious +12.1
Tehama County, CA 70.5 Serious +11.9
Yuba County, CA 67.6 Serious +9.0
Shasta County, CA 62.4 Elevated +3.8
Lassen County, CA 60.1 Elevated +1.5
Sierra County, CA 57.2 Elevated -1.5

Population Peers

County Score Zone vs. Plumas County
Ouachita County, AR 58.6 Elevated +0.0
Yell County, AR 58.6 Elevated -0.0
Love County, OK 58.6 Elevated -0.0
Tippah County, MS 58.6 Elevated -0.0
Washita County, OK 58.7 Elevated +0.0

Download Data

Export all distress indicators for Plumas County as a CSV file.

Find Help in Plumas County

Find an Attorney

State Bar of California — Find a Lawyer offers a lawyer referral service for bankruptcy, foreclosure defense, and consumer rights.

State Bar of California — Find a Lawyer 1-866-442-2529

Free Legal Aid

Legal aid organizations serving Plumas County residents at no cost.

Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA) 1-800-399-4529
Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County (NLSLA) 1-800-433-6251
Bay Area Legal Aid 1-800-551-5554
Legal Services of Northern California 1-800-822-9687
California Rural Legal Assistance (CRLA) 1-800-337-0690
Inland Counties Legal Services (ICLS) 1-888-245-4257
Legal Aid Society of San Diego 1-877-534-2524
Community Legal Aid SoCal 1-800-834-5001
California Indian Legal Services, Inc. (760) 746-8941
Central California Legal Services (800) 675-8001
Greater Bakersfield Legal Assistance, Inc. (661) 325-5943

Self-Help Resources

California Courts Self-Help — Foreclosure and Mortgage Help Official California courts self-help resource with information on foreclosure procedures, homeowner rights, tenant protections in foreclosure, and links to free legal help.
LawHelpCA — Foreclosure Prevention Statewide legal aid directory connecting Californians with free legal information and local legal aid providers for foreclosure prevention, including links to self-help guides and intake forms.
California Attorney General — Homeowner Bill of Rights Official AG page explaining HBOR protections, including fact sheets on dual-tracking prohibition, single point of contact, and how to file a complaint about servicer violations.
DFPI Mortgage Relief Resources DFPI consumer resources for housing and mortgage issues, including information on PACE financing, foreclosure scam alerts, and how to file complaints against licensees.

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Frequently Asked Questions

  • What is the distress score for Plumas County, California?

    Plumas County has a County Distress Index score of 58.6 out of 100, placing it in the Elevated zone. It ranks 926th nationally out of 3,144 counties and 27th in California out of 58 counties.

  • What drives financial distress in Plumas County?

    The primary driver of distress in Plumas County is Employment & Wages, where the county scores 86.1 out of 100. This domain is measured by indicators including Unemployment Rate, Wage-to-Rent Ratio, Business Formation Rate.

  • How does Plumas County compare to neighboring counties?

    Plumas County (58.6) can be compared to its 6 neighboring counties: Butte County, CA (70.7); Tehama County, CA (70.5); Yuba County, CA (67.6).

  • How is the County Distress Index calculated?

    The County Distress Index uses percentile-rank averaging across five domains: Debt & Delinquency, Income & Poverty, Housing Cost Burden, Employment & Wages, and Community Vulnerability. Each county's indicators are ranked against all 3,144 U.S. counties. A score of 50 means the county is at the national median; higher scores indicate greater distress.

  • What is the population of Plumas County?

    Plumas County, California has a population of approximately 19,131 (2023 Census estimate), classified as a small county.