About two in five people with a credit file in Decatur County, Georgia, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Decatur County, 42.3% 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 94% of U.S. counties.
What drives Decatur County's score
In Decatur County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 94.6. Late payments on loans come next, at 94.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Decatur 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.
Decatur County does better than most counties on one measure: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.5%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 94.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector42.3% · August 202596th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people316.3 · 202592nd percentile
-
- 94.1 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind9.8% · August 202594th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind9.7% · August 202591st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score60.2% · second quarter of 202696th percentile
-
- 84.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line21.7% · 202491st percentile
- Children below the poverty line30.9% · 202492nd percentile
- People with a disability17.4% · 2020 to 202462nd percentile
- People without health insurance13.8% · 2020 to 202485th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$50,909 · 202490th percentile
-
- 65.1 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 rent18.9% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.6% · fiscal year 202775th percentile
-
- 60.4 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202628th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working31.8% · 2020 to 202492nd percentile
-
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 Decatur 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 Decatur County, 17.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Decatur County
Georgia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Decatur County had its largest rise, from 23.3% in 2004 to 27.5% in 2009.
In Decatur County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 28.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Decatur County, Georgia, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Decatur County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply after its 2010 low, from 16.4% in 2010 to 18.2% in 2011.
The share of households in Decatur County getting SNAP food aid rose from 2009 to 2024, reaching 22.8%
High on the chart: 23.2% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Decatur County, Georgia.
How Decatur County has changed
Decatur County's population rose 29% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1994 to 1999, reaching 28,063. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Decatur County, Georgia.
The number of jobs located in Decatur County had its largest drop, from 10,688 in 2005 to 8,732 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Decatur County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 11,734 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Decatur County, Georgia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.3% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 25.5% | 2024 21.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,551 | 2024 $50,909 |
The table uses 3.6% for 2025; the score uses 3.5% 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 Decatur County's history
1823
Created December 8, 1823, by an act of the Georgia General Assembly from a portion of Early County. Wikipedia
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 31,785. The 2020 Census counted 29,367, 92% of the peak. Census Bureau
1988
A tornado in April 1988 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2000
A tornado in February 2000 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
Lightning in July 2013 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1966
19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Decatur County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Decatur County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Decatur County, in Georgia and Florida, two score higher. Of the group, Decatur County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Seminole County gets the largest, at 34.2%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gadsden County, FL | 99 | 20.7% | 30.7% |
| Mitchell County, GA | 98 | 23.0% | 30.6% |
| Decatur County, GA | 94 | 21.7% | 28.7% |
| Seminole County, GA | 94 | 22.5% | 34.2% |
| Baker County, GA | 93 | 24.1% | 29.9% |
| Miller County, GA | 93 | 20.3% | 33.8% |
| Grady County, GA | 87 | 19.5% | 29.6% |
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 Decatur County the poorest county in Georgia?
No, Decatur County's poverty rate was 21.7% in 2024, 45th 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, Decatur County ranks 27th of 159 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Decatur 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.
-
Georgia Legal Services Program
Legal aid
-
Georgia Legal Aid
Legal help website
-
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 Decatur 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 Decatur County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.