#211 Top 500 Most Distressed Counties · 2026

Calhoun County, Florida

77.6 · high county distress 211th of 3,144 counties nationally · 13,470 residents How this is calculated →
The headline number
19% Calhoun residents
vs.
8% U.S. median

More than double the national median for uninsured rate.

U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023)

Main Findings

Wire lede · 41 words · paste-ready

Calhoun County, Florida ranks 211th most distressed in the United States on the County Distress Index. The driver: 19% of residents lack health insurance — more than double the national median of 8%. Its highest-scoring domain is Safety Net & Buffer.

Key Findings
  • 211th of 3,144 counties on the County Distress Index — 77.6 · high county distress, 14th in Florida.
  • 19% of residents lack health insurance (U.S. median 8%). Uninsured rate at the 95th percentile nationally. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023).
  • Unemployment at 5% — national median 4%, ranked at the 84th percentile. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS (May 2026).
  • Severe rent burden (50%+) at 26% — national median 18%, ranked at the 90th percentile. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023).
  • Subprime credit share at 35% — national median 23%, ranked at the 87th percentile. Source: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Equifax (2025).
Distinctive Signals
Boundary Signal

Neighbors span three CDI score labels. The 18-point drop to Bay County marks where the Florida distress corridor ends.

County Distress Index cluster map. Calhoun County, Florida and its neighbors colored by county distress score label.
Calhoun and its 4 geographic neighbors, graded by County Distress Index score. Calhoun County ranks 211th of 3,144. American Default Research
Wire quote — paste-ready, any angle 20 words

"Calhoun County has a high county distress score. The score label gives the intensity; the rank gives the national position."

— Ross Kilburn, Founder, American Default Research
Analyst quote — for feature use 35 words

"The CDI gives this county a high county distress label. The rank belongs beside the score because the two answer different questions: score intensity and national position. Its highest-scoring domain is Safety Net & Buffer."

— Ross Kilburn, Founder, American Default Research

Indicator History

Period-correct raw indicators from the county-history panel. The CDI composite is excluded because it is a current cross-sectional score.

Updated Jul 1, 2026
BLS 1990 to 2025

Unemployment rate

4.4% -3.0 pp since 1990
Census 1989 to 2024

Poverty rate

19.2% -5.7 pp since 1989
BEA 1969 to 2024

Transfer income share

37.9% +24.4 pp since 1969
FRED/Equifax 2014 Q2 to 2025 Q4

Subprime credit population

34.9% -3.0 pp since 2014 Q2

The Indicators Behind Calhoun County's CDI Score

Every number traces to a public source. Calhoun County's value shown alongside FL's median and the U.S. median. Full CSV available for download.

How to read the table. A domain score is a 0–100 composite of the indicators in that domain; higher values represent a higher mean of distress-oriented indicator percentiles. A county's domain rank is computed separately against all counties. Percentile is Calhoun County's national rank among all 3,144 U.S. counties for that indicator, always oriented so higher = more distressed.
Indicator Calhoun FL median U.S. median Pctile Source
Delinquency — domain score 80 · Rank 544 of 3,144
Auto loan delinquency Share of auto loan accounts 60+ days past due 9% 6% 5% 87th Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Credit card delinquency Share of credit card accounts 60+ days past due 6% 7% 5% 65th Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Subprime credit share Share of residents with a credit score below 660 35% 29% 23% 87th Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Equifax (2025)
Default & Legal — domain score 49 · Rank 1,571 of 3,144
Debt in collections Share of residents with a credit file who have debt in collections 34% 28% 23% 84th Urban Institute Debt in America (2025)
Bankruptcy filing rate Personal bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents 59 138 126 14th Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, F-5A (2025)
Debt Burden (housing basis) — domain score 84 · Rank 288 of 3,144
Rent-to-income ratio Fair Market Rent (2BR) as share of median household income 25% 27% 21% 78th HUD FMR (FY2026); U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023)
Severe rent burden (50%+) Share of renter households paying 50%+ of income on rent 26% 25% 18% 90th U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023)
Labor — domain score 84 · Rank 477 of 3,144
Unemployment Share of labor force unemployed 5% 5% 4% 84th U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS (May 2026)
Safety Net & Buffer — domain score 91 · Rank 39 of 3,144
Child poverty rate Share of children under 18 below the federal poverty line 27% 19% 18% 84th U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023)
Disability rate Share of residents reporting a disability 24% 17% 16% 95th U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023)
Poverty rate Share of population below the federal poverty line 23% 14% 14% 92nd U.S. Census Bureau, SAIPE (2023)
Uninsured rate Share of residents without health insurance coverage 19% 12% 8% 95th U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year (2023)
Data compiled May 2026 from Urban Institute Debt in America (2025 panel), U.S. Census Bureau (ACS 5-yr 2023, SAIPE 2023, Business Formation Statistics 2024), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (LAUS May 2026, QCEW 2024), Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (F-5A bankruptcy filings 2025), and HUD Fair Market Rents (FY2026).

Five-Domain Breakdown

The CDI is an equal-weight composite of five family-v1 distress domains. Each domain contributes 20% of the county score.

Safety Net & Buffer Primary driver 91
Weight 20% · Rank 39 of 3,144
Labor 84
Weight 20% · Rank 477 of 3,144
Debt Burden (housing basis) 84
Weight 20% · Rank 288 of 3,144
Delinquency 80
Weight 20% · Rank 544 of 3,144
Default & Legal 49
Weight 20% · Rank 1,571 of 3,144

Methodology

The County Distress Index is a 0–100 composite score of household financial distress, computed for all 3,144 U.S. counties. Higher scores indicate greater distress. The index is built from five equal-weighted domains: Delinquency, Default & Legal, Debt Burden, Labor, and Safety Net & Buffer. Each domain is the mean of distress-oriented indicator percentiles; the CDI score is the equal-weight mean of those domain scores.

Data sources include the Urban Institute Debt in America (Equifax consumer credit panel), FRED/Equifax (subprime credit share), U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates), Bureau of Labor Statistics (Local Area Unemployment Statistics), U.S. Courts Administrative Office (F-5A bankruptcy filings), and HUD Fair Market Rents. Data vintages range from 2022 to 2026 depending on source; full indicator-level vintage detail is in the methodology document.

For Press & Research

Everything you need to cite Calhoun County data — in under 60 seconds.

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Press contact: Ross Kilburn · press@americandefault.org · (307) 264-2992 · same-day response, 9am–6pm ET
Draft wire copy 146-word AP-style article — use freely with attribution
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BLOUNTSTOWN, Fla. — Calhoun County ranks 211th among the nation's most financially distressed counties, according to the County Distress Index released this month by American Default Research.

The composite score of 77.6 out of 100 gives Calhoun a high county distress label. Among 3,144 U.S. counties scored, 210 counties rank more distressed. Within Florida, Calhoun ranks 14th of 67 counties.

The index, which draws on 13 source indicators from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Urban Institute and federal court filings, identifies safety net & buffer as the primary driver in Calhoun. 19% of residents lack health insurance — more than double the national median of 8%.

"Calhoun County has a high county distress score. The score label gives the intensity; the rank gives the national position," said Ross Kilburn, founder of American Default Research.

Full methodology and county-by-county data are available at americandefault.org/methodology/cdi.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is Calhoun County's CDI score, and what does it mean?

Calhoun County scores 77.6 out of 100 on the County Distress Index, with the score label high county distress. It ranks 211th of 3,144 U.S. counties and 14th of 67 Florida counties. Higher county scores indicate more distress.

What drives Calhoun County's distress score?

The highest-scoring domain is Safety Net & Buffer, at a domain score of 91. Uninsured rate ranks at the 95th percentile nationally.

How does Calhoun County compare to its neighbors?

Calhoun County's neighbors span three CDI score labels. Highest-distress neighbor: Liberty County (80.98, very high county distress). Lowest: Bay County (63.23, moderate-high county distress).

How is the County Distress Index calculated?

The CDI is a 0–100 composite of 13 source indicators across five equal-weighted domains: Delinquency, Default & Legal, Debt Burden, Labor, and Safety Net & Buffer. Data comes from Urban Institute, Census Bureau, BLS, U.S. Courts, HUD, and related public sources. Full methodology →
Ross Kilburn
Written by

Ross Kilburn, Founder

Founder · American Default Research · Seattle, Washington

Two decades working directly with financially distressed American households — from property preservation in 2003, to negotiating over 1,000 short sales during the Great Recession, to foreclosure defense marketing today. Author, The Ark Law Group Complete Guide to Short Sales (Auroch Press, 2013). Founded American Default Research in 2026.

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