In Lee County, Georgia, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in seven dollars of the typical household's income
In Lee County, 14.8% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 54% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lee County's score
In Lee County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 83.2. Jobs are the lowest part, at 10.9. Unemployment averaged 2.8%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, lower than in 90% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lee 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.
Even so, Lee County is worse off than most counties on bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people (383.8, 2025) and people with a car or retail loan behind (7.8%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 83.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.9% · August 202570th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people383.8 · 202595th percentile
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- 74.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.3% · August 202577th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.8% · August 202581st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score44.3% · second quarter of 202664th percentile
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- 39.2 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 rent22.6% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income14.8% · fiscal year 20272nd percentile
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- 27.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.7% · 202419th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.3% · 202429th percentile
- People with a disability12.9% · 2020 to 202421st percentile
- People without health insurance8.2% · 2020 to 202453rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$89,592 · 202411th percentile
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- 10.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year2.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 20269th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working14.1% · 2020 to 202412th 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 Lee 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 Lee County, 13.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lee County
Georgia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Lee County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 19.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than three times as much as benefit checks
In Lee County, Georgia, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 19.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lee County getting SNAP food aid rose most in two steps: 6.8% in 2010 to 8.5% in 2011; 7.8% in 2023 to 9.5% in 2024.
The share of households in Lee 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: 6.8% 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, Lee County, Georgia.
How Lee County has changed
Lee County's population had its largest rise, from 19,253 in 1994 to 24,335 in 1999.
Lee County's population grew to about five times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 34,073, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 34,073. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lee County, Georgia.
The number of jobs located in Lee County had its largest rise, from 2,741 in 1995 to 3,958 in 2000.
The number of jobs located in Lee County grew to about four times its 1990 size in 2025, reaching 7,583, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2005 to 2010, reaching 5,242. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lee County, Georgia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.4% | 2025 2.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.8% | 2024 9.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $31,205 | 2024 $89,592 |
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Lee County's history
1993
A tornado in October 1993 did $50 million in property damage and killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 33,163, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1966
14 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lee County, 5 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lee County beside its neighbors
All five counties that border Lee County score higher than it does. Of the group, Lee County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Dougherty County gets the largest, at 34.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dougherty County, GA | 99 | 23.6% | 34.8% |
| Terrell County, GA | 99 | 27.3% | 34.3% |
| Sumter County, GA | 97 | 27.6% | 34.5% |
| Worth County, GA | 97 | 26.4% | 30.0% |
| Crisp County, GA | 96 | 22.8% | 33.1% |
| 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 Lee County the poorest county in Georgia?
No, Lee County's poverty rate was 9.7% in 2024, 141st 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, Lee County ranks 140th of 159 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lee 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 Lee County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.