About half people with a credit file in Clayton County, Georgia, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Clayton County, 48.3% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 99% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 98% of U.S. counties.
What drives Clayton County's score
In Clayton County, housing costs weigh most: the score for housing costs is 99.1. Late payments on loans come next, at 98.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Clayton 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.
Clayton County does better than most counties on one measure: people with a disability (12.0%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 99.1 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 rent33.0% · 2020 to 202498th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income35.3% · fiscal year 202799th percentile
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- 98.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind14.7% · August 202599th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind13.2% · August 202597th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score64.6% · second quarter of 202698th percentile
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- 98.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector48.3% · August 202599th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people486.8 · 202598th percentile
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- 67.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line17.4% · 202477th percentile
- Children below the poverty line24.8% · 202481st percentile
- People with a disability12.0% · 2020 to 202414th percentile
- People without health insurance17.0% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,825 · 202471st percentile
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- 63.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202662nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working23.2% · 2020 to 202464th 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 Clayton 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 Clayton County, 10.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Clayton County
Georgia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Clayton County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about eight times its 1969 level, reaching 27.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Clayton County, Georgia, benefit checks' share of income grew to about eight times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 27.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Clayton County getting SNAP food aid rose most from 14.6% in 2011 to 21.6% in 2013, 3.5 points each year.
The share of households in Clayton County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 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, Clayton County, Georgia.
How Clayton County has changed
Clayton County's population had its largest rise, from 95,503 in 1969 to 132,030 in 1974.
Clayton County's population tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 297,703, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 297,703. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Clayton County, Georgia.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Clayton County rose by about half to 129,649, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 129,649. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Clayton County, Georgia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.3% | 2025 4.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 8.7% | 2024 17.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $31,941 | 2024 $59,825 |
The table uses 4.4% for 2025; the score uses 4.3% 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 Clayton County's history
1973
A tornado in March 1973 did $250 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A tornado in May 2008 did $7.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 297,595, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2021
A thunderstorm in March 2021 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A thunderstorm in January 2024 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
15 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Clayton County, 3 of them for flooding. FEMA
Clayton County beside its neighbors
Clayton County scores higher than all five counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Clayton County ranks 2nd of the six; Spalding County is highest, at 31.6%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clayton County, GA | 98 | 17.4% | 27.8% |
| Spalding County, GA | 95 | 16.4% | 31.6% |
| DeKalb County, GA | 81 | 12.7% | 14.9% |
| Henry County, GA | 78 | 8.2% | 21.0% |
| Fulton County, GA | 61 | 11.3% | 8.9% |
| Fayette County, GA | 34 | 5.8% | 15.5% |
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 Clayton County the poorest county in Georgia?
No, Clayton County's poverty rate was 17.4% in 2024, 79th 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, Clayton County ranks 8th of 159 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Clayton 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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Nid-hca Atlanta Metro Regional Office
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Atlanta Legal Aid Society
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 Clayton 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 Clayton County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.