About two in five people with a credit file in Union County, Florida, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Union County, 42.0% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 96% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 78% of U.S. counties.
What drives Union County's score
In Union County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 82.5. People with a credit card behind: 12.0%, August 2025, higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Jobs come next, at 78.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Union 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.
Union County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (19.2%, fiscal year 2027) and renters paying half their income or more in rent (16.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 82.5 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind12.0% · August 2025top 5%
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.5% · August 202567th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score52.2% · second quarter of 202684th percentile
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- 78.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year6.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202694th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working22.6% · 2020 to 202461st percentile
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- 71.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector42.0% · August 2025top 5%
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people122.3 · 202548th percentile
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- 64.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line18.2% · 202481st percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.9% · 202459th percentile
- People with a disability18.4% · 2020 to 202470th percentile
- People without health insurance7.8% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$63,669 · 202459th percentile
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- 37.3 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 rent16.6% · 2020 to 202440th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.2% · fiscal year 202733rd 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 Union 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 Union County, 16.6% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Union County
Florida
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Union County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 35.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Union County, Florida, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 35.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Union County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply from its first year (10.5% in 2009) to 14.4% in 2010.
The share of households in Union County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 10.5% 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, Union County, Florida.
How Union County has changed
Union County's population had its largest rise, from 10,165 in 1989 to 12,553 in 1994.
Union County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 15,738
High on the chart: 16,092 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Union County, Florida.
The number of jobs located in Union County had its largest rise, from 3,472 in 2000 to 4,059 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in Union County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 13% since
High on the chart: 4,059 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Union County, Florida.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.1% | 2025 5.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.9% | 2024 18.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,920 | 2024 $63,669 |
The table uses 5.3% for 2025; the score uses 6.4% 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 Union County's history
1921
Created on October 1, 1921, from part of Bradford County. Wikipedia
1983
A tornado in April 1983 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 16,147, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1992
31 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Union County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Union County beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Union County, two score higher. Of the group, Union County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (35.2%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia County, FL | 87 | 16.0% | 32.8% |
| Bradford County, FL | 83 | 18.2% | 30.7% |
| Union County, FL | 78 | 18.2% | 35.2% |
| Alachua County, FL | 68 | 22.9% | 20.1% |
| Baker County, FL | 61 | 13.0% | 26.8% |
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 Union County the poorest county in Florida?
No, Union County's poverty rate was 18.2% in 2024, 18th highest of 67 in Florida (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Hamilton County, at 25.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Union County ranks 30th of 67 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Union 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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Three Rivers Legal Services
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 Union County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.