About two in five people with a credit file in Baldwin County, Georgia, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Baldwin County, 39.3% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 95% of U.S. counties.
What drives Baldwin County's score
In Baldwin County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 94.3. Bankruptcy filings ran at 373.3 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 91.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Baldwin 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.
Baldwin County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.7%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and people with a disability (15.9%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 94.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector39.3% · August 202593rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people373.3 · 202595th percentile
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- 91.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind9.6% · August 202593rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind10.4% · August 202593rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score53.6% · second quarter of 202687th percentile
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- 83.2 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 rent25.2% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income24.1% · fiscal year 202778th percentile
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- 78.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line21.5% · 202491st percentile
- Children below the poverty line27.8% · 202487th percentile
- People with a disability15.9% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
- People without health insurance12.2% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$54,896 · 202482nd percentile
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- 58.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202639th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working26.0% · 2020 to 202478th 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 Baldwin 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 Baldwin County, 17.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Baldwin County
Georgia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Baldwin County had its largest rise, from 19.9% in 1999 to 24.5% in 2004.
In Baldwin County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 32.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about a third more than benefit checks
In Baldwin County, Georgia, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 32.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Baldwin County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 7.2% in 2009 to 10.3% in 2010.
The share of households in Baldwin County getting SNAP food aid more than doubled from 2009 to 2024, reaching 16.2%
High on the chart: 16.7% in 2017. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Baldwin County, Georgia.
How Baldwin County has changed
Baldwin County's population had its largest rise, from 34,455 in 1979 to 37,478 in 1984.
Baldwin County's population rose by about a quarter from 1969 to 2024, reaching 43,644
High on the chart: 47,087 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Baldwin County, Georgia.
The number of jobs located in Baldwin County fell most sharply after its 2005 high, from 19,525 in 2005 to 15,435 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Baldwin County fell 10% from 1990 to 2025, with its low point on the chart in 2020
Low on the chart: 15,053 in 2020. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Baldwin County, Georgia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.1% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 16.9% | 2024 21.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,510 | 2024 $54,896 |
The table uses 3.8% for 2025; the score uses 3.7% 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 Baldwin County's history
1803
Part of the land ceded by the Creek people in the Treaty of Fort Wilkinson in 1802 was used to create Baldwin County on May 11, 1803, by the Georgia General Assembly. Wikipedia
1964
A tornado in December 1964 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
Rheem Manufacturing closed Milledgeville operations in 2008, eliminating 1,500 jobs. Wikipedia
2008
Hail in May 2008 did $1.2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 45,720. The 2020 Census counted 43,799, 96% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1977
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Baldwin County, 1 of them for flooding. FEMA
Baldwin County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Baldwin County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Baldwin County ranks 4th of the six; Hancock County is highest, at 43.1%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hancock County, GA | 99 | 30.7% | 43.1% |
| Wilkinson County, GA | 96 | 20.6% | 36.8% |
| Baldwin County, GA | 95 | 21.5% | 32.4% |
| Washington County, GA | 95 | 25.1% | 33.4% |
| Putnam County, GA | 67 | 13.5% | 24.6% |
| Jones County, GA | 56 | 11.7% | 24.1% |
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 Baldwin County the poorest county in Georgia?
No, Baldwin County's poverty rate was 21.5% in 2024, 46th highest of 159 in Georgia (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Calhoun County, at 36.8%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Baldwin County ranks 23rd of 159 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Baldwin 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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Georgia Legal Services Program
Legal aid
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Georgia Legal Aid
Legal help website
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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 Baldwin 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 Baldwin County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.