About two in five people with a credit file in Crawford County, Georgia, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Crawford County, 37.0% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 89% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 79% of U.S. counties.
What drives Crawford County's score
In Crawford County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 87.7. Late payments on loans come next, at 72.0.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Crawford 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.
Crawford County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.4%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and adults 25 to 54 not working (19.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 87.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector37.0% · August 202589th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people252.5 · 202585th percentile
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- 72.0 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.8% · August 202570th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.2% · August 202563rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score50.8% · second quarter of 202681st percentile
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- 71.0 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 rent20.6% · 2020 to 202464th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.8% · fiscal year 202777th percentile
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- 70.2 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.4% · 202460th percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.5% · 202474th percentile
- People with a disability21.4% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- People without health insurance11.9% · 2020 to 202477th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$65,964 · 202452nd percentile
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- 35.1 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202626th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.6% · 2020 to 202443rd 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 Crawford 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 Crawford County, 20.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Crawford County
Georgia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Crawford County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 28.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Crawford County, Georgia, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Crawford County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 18.4% in 2016 to 14.9% in 2017.
The share of households in Crawford 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: 12.0% in 2010. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Crawford County, Georgia.
How Crawford County has changed
Crawford County's population had its largest rise, from 8,826 in 1989 to 10,628 in 1994.
Crawford County's population more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 12,349
High on the chart: 12,784 in 2004. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Crawford County, Georgia.
The number of jobs located in Crawford County rose most sharply from its first year (965 in 1990) to 1,355 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Crawford County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 11% since
High on the chart: 1,505 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Crawford County, Georgia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.6% | 2025 3.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 17.1% | 2024 14.4% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,936 | 2024 $65,964 |
The table uses 3.5% for 2025; the score uses 3.4% 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 Crawford County's history
1822
Georgia's fifty-seventh county, created December 9, 1822 from Houston County. Wikipedia
1954
A tornado in March 1954 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1964
A tornado in December 1964 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 12,630. The 2020 Census counted 12,130, 96% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1966
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Crawford County, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
Crawford County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Crawford County, four score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Crawford County ranks 5th of the seven; Taylor County is highest, at 36.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bibb County, GA | 99 | 23.4% | 31.0% |
| Taylor County, GA | 94 | 25.1% | 36.3% |
| Upson County, GA | 92 | 16.3% | 31.5% |
| Peach County, GA | 84 | 17.7% | 32.7% |
| Crawford County, GA | 79 | 14.4% | 28.2% |
| Houston County, GA | 61 | 11.9% | 23.8% |
| Monroe County, GA | 46 | 10.5% | 20.0% |
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 Crawford County the poorest county in Georgia?
No, Crawford County's poverty rate was 14.4% in 2024, 98th 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, Crawford County ranks 92nd of 159 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Crawford 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 Crawford 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 Crawford County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.