About two in five people with a credit file in Long County, Georgia, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Long County, 41.1% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 95% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 70% of U.S. counties.
What drives Long County's score
In Long County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 88.0. Late payments on loans come next, at 78.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Long 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.
Long County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (10.2%, 2020 to 2024) and 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.
- 88.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector41.1% · August 2025top 5%
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people224.6 · 202580th percentile
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- 78.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind7.9% · August 202583rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.5% · August 202567th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score52.2% · second quarter of 202684th percentile
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- 61.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.8% · 202455th percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.3% · 202456th percentile
- People with a disability19.2% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
- People without health insurance11.0% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$68,102 · 202445th percentile
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- 52.9 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 202631st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working25.1% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
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- 30.3 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 rent10.2% · 2020 to 202412th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.5% · fiscal year 202748th 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 Long 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 Long County, 9.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Long County
Georgia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Long County had its largest rise, from 17.3% in 2004 to 22.9% in 2009.
In Long County, benefit checks' share of income has nearly doubled since 1969, reaching 26.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Long County, Georgia, benefit checks' share of income nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 26.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Long County getting SNAP food aid rose most in two steps: 13.8% in 2011 to 18.2% in 2012; 16.4% in 2014 to 20.8% in 2015.
The share of households in Long County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 18.2%
Low on the chart: 13.8% in 2011. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Long County, Georgia.
How Long County has changed
Long County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 16,063 in 2019 to 20,439 in 2024.
Long County's population grew to about five times its 1969 size, reaching 20,439, the highest on the chart
High on the chart: 20,439 in 2024. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Long County, Georgia.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Long County grew to about four times its 1990 size, reaching 1,388, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 1,388. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Long County, Georgia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.8% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 18.8% | 2024 13.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,185 | 2024 $68,102 |
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 Long County's history
1920
Constitutional amendment proposed August 14, 1920, ratified November 2, 1920. Wikipedia
1926
The two-story brick courthouse was completed in 1926. New Georgia Encyclopedia
1998
A tornado in April 1998 killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 16,168, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1966
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Long County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Long County beside its neighbors
All four counties that border Long County score higher than it does. Of the group, Long County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; McIntosh County gets the largest, at 34.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liberty County, GA | 91 | 16.0% | 28.4% |
| McIntosh County, GA | 89 | 16.5% | 34.3% |
| Wayne County, GA | 88 | 18.6% | 32.0% |
| Tattnall County, GA | 80 | 24.1% | 30.4% |
| Long County, GA | 70 | 13.8% | 26.9% |
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 Long County the poorest county in Georgia?
No, Long County's poverty rate was 13.8% in 2024, 105th 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, Long County ranks 105th of 159 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Long 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 Long County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.