Benefit checks make up 40 cents of every dollar of income in Otero County, Colorado
In Otero County, 40.3% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 81% of U.S. counties.
What drives Otero County's score
In Otero County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 79.7. Unemployment averaged 5.6%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, higher than in 88% of U.S. counties. Income and the safety net comes next, at 74.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Otero 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.
Otero County does better than most counties on two measures: people without health insurance (6.6%, 2020 to 2024) and people with a car or retail loan behind (4.7%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 79.7 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202688th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working24.4% · 2020 to 202470th percentile
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- 74.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line19.0% · 202483rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line26.1% · 202484th percentile
- People with a disability19.3% · 2020 to 202476th percentile
- People without health insurance6.6% · 2020 to 202438th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$51,225 · 202489th percentile
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- 69.5 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 rent19.2% · 2020 to 202456th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.8% · fiscal year 202782nd percentile
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- 64.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.9% · August 202571st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.7% · August 202543rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score49.2% · second quarter of 202677th percentile
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- 53.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector25.1% · August 202557th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people126.8 · 202550th 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 Otero 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 Otero County, 21.3% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Otero County
Colorado
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Otero County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 40.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in only a little more than benefit checks
In Otero County, Colorado, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 40.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Otero County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply after its 2010 low, from 14.1% in 2010 to 17.4% in 2011.
The share of households in Otero County getting SNAP food aid rose from 2009 to 2024, reaching 21.8%
High on the chart: 22.7% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Otero County, Colorado.
How Otero County has changed
Otero County's population had its largest drop, from 22,033 in 1984 to 20,577 in 1989.
Otero County's population fell by about a quarter to 17,991, the lowest on the chart
High on the chart: 23,417 in 1974. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Otero County, Colorado.
The number of jobs located in Otero County had its largest rise, from 6,447 in 1990 to 7,194 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Otero County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 17% since
High on the chart: 7,276 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Otero County, Colorado.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.1% | 2025 5.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 26.8% | 2024 19.0% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,751 | 2024 $51,225 |
The table uses 5.4% for 2025; the score uses 5.6% 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 Otero County's history
1941
Army Air Force Training Base outside La Junta during World War II with Strategic Air Command detachment afterward. Wikipedia
1950
The county's largest recorded population was the 1950 Census count of 25,275. The 2020 Census counted 18,690, 74% of the peak. Census Bureau
1996
Lightning in September 1996 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2005
Lightning in September 2005 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2016
A thunderstorm in June 2016 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A flood in June 2024 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
9 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Otero County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Otero County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Otero County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Otero County ranks 2nd of the six; Las Animas County is highest, at 41.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Las Animas County, CO | 90 | 19.8% | 41.3% |
| Pueblo County, CO | 87 | 15.8% | 32.5% |
| Bent County, CO | 82 | 28.9% | 38.7% |
| Otero County, CO | 81 | 19.0% | 40.3% |
| Crowley County, CO | 62 | 39.0% | 39.1% |
| Kiowa County, CO | 29 | 14.7% | 23.8% |
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 Otero County the poorest county in Colorado?
No, Otero County's poverty rate was 19.0% in 2024, 7th 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, Otero County ranks 5th of 64 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Otero 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.
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 Otero County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.