In Jasper County, Georgia, rent on a two-bedroom takes about three in ten dollars of the typical household's income
In Jasper County, 28.2% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 74% of U.S. counties.
What drives Jasper County's score
In Jasper County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 82.0. Bankruptcy filings ran at 285.6 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 89% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 71.9.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Jasper 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.
Jasper County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.3%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and median household income ($75,080, 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 82.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector30.2% · August 202574th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people285.6 · 202589th percentile
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- 71.9 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.5% · August 202579th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.5% · August 202553rd percentile
- People with a subprime credit score51.3% · second quarter of 202682nd percentile
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- 68.3 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 rent16.9% · 2020 to 202442nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income28.2% · fiscal year 202793rd percentile
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- 52.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.2% · 202449th percentile
- Children below the poverty line19.0% · 202460th percentile
- People with a disability15.1% · 2020 to 202441st percentile
- People without health insurance12.9% · 2020 to 202482nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$75,080 · 202429th percentile
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- 48.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202623rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working25.0% · 2020 to 202473rd 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 Jasper 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 Jasper County, 17.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Jasper County
Georgia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Jasper County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 24.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Jasper County, Georgia, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 24.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Jasper County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen by about half
Biggest drop: 2019 to 2020, reaching 16.1%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Jasper County, Georgia.
How Jasper County has changed
Jasper County's population tripled to 17,219, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 17,219. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Jasper County, Georgia.
The number of jobs located in Jasper County had its largest drop, from 2,670 in 2005 to 2,040 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Jasper County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 8% since
High on the chart: 2,670 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Jasper County, Georgia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.8% | 2025 3.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 18.4% | 2024 13.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,960 | 2024 $75,080 |
The table uses 3.4% for 2025; the score uses 3.3% 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 Jasper County's history
1807
Created on December 10, 1807, from land originally part of Baldwin County. Wikipedia
1910
The county's largest recorded population was the 1910 Census count of 16,552. The 2020 Census counted 14,588, 88% of the peak. Census Bureau
2023
A tornado in January 2023 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Jasper County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Jasper County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Jasper County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Jasper County ranks 3rd of the seven; Butts County is highest, at 28.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Newton County, GA | 90 | 11.9% | 25.2% |
| Jasper County, GA | 74 | 13.2% | 24.7% |
| Putnam County, GA | 67 | 13.5% | 24.6% |
| Butts County, GA | 66 | 13.4% | 28.7% |
| Jones County, GA | 56 | 11.7% | 24.1% |
| Morgan County, GA | 51 | 10.6% | 20.8% |
| 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 Jasper County the poorest county in Georgia?
No, Jasper County's poverty rate was 13.2% in 2024, 113th 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, Jasper County ranks 100th of 159 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Jasper 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 Jasper 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 Jasper County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.