About nine in ten adults aged 25 to 54 in Chaffee County, Colorado, have a job
In Chaffee County, 11.6% of adults aged 25 to 54 were not working. That is lower than in 94% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 85% of U.S. counties.
What drives Chaffee County's score
In Chaffee County, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 82.6. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 11.4. About one in four people (25.6%, Q2 2026) has a subprime credit score, a lower share than in 95% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Chaffee 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, Chaffee County is worse off than most counties on renters paying half their income or more in rent (26.3%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 82.6 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 rent26.3% · 2020 to 202490th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.5% · fiscal year 202774th percentile
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- 18.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.6% · 202419th percentile
- Children below the poverty line10.3% · 202414th percentile
- People with a disability11.4% · 2020 to 202410th percentile
- People without health insurance6.5% · 2020 to 202436th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$89,591 · 202411th percentile
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- 16.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202628th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working11.6% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
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- 13.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector12.3% · August 20258th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people67.9 · 202518th percentile
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- 11.4 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 behind3.2% · August 202518th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score25.6% · second quarter of 20264th 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 Chaffee 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 Chaffee County, 26.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Chaffee County
Colorado
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Chaffee County had its largest rise, from 11.3% in 1979 to 16.0% in 1984.
In Chaffee County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 19.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Chaffee County, Colorado, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 19.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Chaffee County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 5.8% in 2019 to 9.1% in 2020.
The share of households in Chaffee County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2022 and has since fallen to 7.0%
Low on the chart: 2.9% 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, Chaffee County, Colorado.
How Chaffee County has changed
Chaffee County's population doubled to 20,780, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1994 to 1999, reaching 16,026. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Chaffee County, Colorado.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Chaffee County more than doubled to 9,343, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 9,343. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Chaffee County, Colorado.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.7% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.5% | 2024 9.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,482 | 2024 $89,591 |
The table uses 3.6% for 2025; the score uses 3.5% 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 Chaffee County's history
2007
A flash flood in July 2007 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A flash flood in August 2007 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
Lightning in June 2010 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
Lightning in July 2015 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 19,476, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 2002
5 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Chaffee County. FEMA
Chaffee County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Chaffee County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Chaffee County ranks 3rd of the seven; Fremont County is highest, at 32.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saguache County, CO | 72 | 23.7% | 29.2% |
| Fremont County, CO | 70 | 15.3% | 32.8% |
| Lake County, CO | 34 | 11.3% | 15.8% |
| Park County, CO | 17 | 8.1% | 18.7% |
| Chaffee County, CO | 14 | 9.6% | 19.9% |
| Pitkin County, CO | 11 | 6.9% | 3.9% |
| Gunnison County, CO | 9 | 11.0% | 12.9% |
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 Chaffee County the poorest county in Colorado?
No, Chaffee County's poverty rate was 9.6% in 2024, 43rd highest of 64 in Colorado (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Crowley County, at 39.0%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Chaffee County ranks 50th of 64 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Chaffee 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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Colorado Legal Services
Legal aid
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Colorado Bar Association — Find a Lawyer directory
Find a lawyer
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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 Chaffee 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 Chaffee County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.