About two in five people with a credit file in Crisp County, Georgia, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Crisp County, 43.3% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 97% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 96% of U.S. counties.
What drives Crisp County's score
In Crisp County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 94.3. Late payments on loans come next, at 90.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Crisp 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.
Crisp County does better than most counties on one measure: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.6%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
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 collector43.3% · August 2025top 5%
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people341.3 · 202593rd percentile
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- 90.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.7% · August 202589th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.6% · August 202586th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score61.6% · second quarter of 2026top 5%
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- 90.3 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 rent30.6% · 2020 to 2024top 5%
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income25.5% · fiscal year 202785th percentile
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- 89.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line22.8% · 202493rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line34.2% · 2024top 5%
- People with a disability19.4% · 2020 to 202476th percentile
- People without health insurance14.5% · 2020 to 202487th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$47,101 · 2024top 5%
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- 44.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.6% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202632nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.7% · 2020 to 202456th 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 Crisp 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 Crisp County, 19.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Crisp County
Georgia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Crisp County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 33.1% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Crisp County, Georgia, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 33.1%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Crisp County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop in the last span, from 30.7% in 2023 to 26.9% in 2024.
The share of households in Crisp County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2023 and has since fallen to 26.9%
Low on the chart: 20.9% 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, Crisp County, Georgia.
How Crisp County has changed
Crisp County's population had its largest drop, from 22,216 in 2014 to 20,537 in 2019.
Crisp County's population was at its highest on the chart in 2009 and is down 17% since
High on the chart: 23,378 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Crisp County, Georgia.
The number of jobs located in Crisp County fell most sharply on the way to its 2010 low, from 8,798 in 2005 to 7,201 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Crisp County was at its highest on the chart in 1995 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 9,174 in 1995. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Crisp County, Georgia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.8% | 2025 3.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 32.0% | 2024 22.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $18,302 | 2024 $47,101 |
The table uses 3.3% for 2025; the score uses 3.6% 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 Crisp County's history
1905
Crisp County was created on August 17, 1905, from Dooly County. Wikipedia
2003
A thunderstorm in July 2003 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2009
A flood in April 2009 did $1.2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 23,439. The 2020 Census counted 20,128, 86% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1977
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Crisp County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Crisp County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Crisp County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Crisp County ranks 5th of the seven; Turner County is highest, at 39.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sumter County, GA | 97 | 27.6% | 34.5% |
| Worth County, GA | 97 | 26.4% | 30.0% |
| Crisp County, GA | 96 | 22.8% | 33.1% |
| Turner County, GA | 94 | 25.2% | 39.0% |
| Dooly County, GA | 85 | 25.6% | 36.7% |
| Wilcox County, GA | 80 | 28.4% | 38.8% |
| Lee County, GA | 45 | 9.7% | 19.9% |
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 Crisp County the poorest county in Georgia?
No, Crisp County's poverty rate was 22.8% in 2024, 33rd 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, Crisp County ranks 18th of 159 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Crisp 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.
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 Crisp County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.