About two in five people with a credit file in Meriwether County, Georgia, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Meriwether County, 39.6% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 93% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 87% of U.S. counties.
What drives Meriwether County's score
In Meriwether County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 94.6. Bankruptcy filings ran at 377.4 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 88.7.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Meriwether 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.
Meriwether County does better than most counties on two measures: renters paying half their income or more in rent (13.2%, 2020 to 2024) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (19.5%, fiscal year 2027).
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 collector39.6% · August 202593rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people377.4 · 202595th percentile
-
- 88.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.6% · August 202588th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind8.6% · August 202586th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score56.1% · second quarter of 202691st percentile
-
- 78.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line17.8% · 202479th percentile
- Children below the poverty line26.2% · 202484th percentile
- People with a disability20.0% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
- People without health insurance12.4% · 2020 to 202480th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$61,548 · 202465th percentile
-
- 70.6 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202654th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working28.6% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
-
- 30.1 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 rent13.2% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.5% · fiscal year 202736th 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 Meriwether 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 Meriwether County, 21.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Meriwether County
Georgia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Meriwether County had its largest rise, from 23.5% in 2004 to 31.0% in 2009.
In Meriwether County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 32.8% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Meriwether County, Georgia, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32.8%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Meriwether County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 25.5% in 2016 to 21.6% in 2017.
The share of households in Meriwether County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a fifth
Low on the chart: 14.2% 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, Meriwether County, Georgia.
How Meriwether County has changed
Meriwether County's population had its largest drop, from 22,446 in 2009 to 20,968 in 2014.
Meriwether County's population rose 10% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 22,685 in 1994. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Meriwether County, Georgia.
The number of jobs located in Meriwether County had its largest rise in the last span, from 4,242 in 2020 to 5,046 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Meriwether County fell 14% from 1990 to 2025, with its low point on the chart in 2020
Low on the chart: 4,242 in 2020. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Meriwether County, Georgia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.4% | 2025 4.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 20.8% | 2024 17.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $19,433 | 2024 $61,548 |
The table uses 4.3% for 2025; the score uses 4.1% 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 Meriwether County's history
1827
The county was formed on December 14, 1827, as the 73rd county in Georgia. Wikipedia
1920
The county's largest recorded population was the 1920 Census count of 26,168. The 2020 Census counted 20,613, 79% of the peak. Census Bureau
1993
A tornado in February 1993 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2003
A flash flood in May 2003 did $5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2011
A tornado in April 2011 did $6 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2024
A tornado in December 2024 did $6,000,000 in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1977
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Meriwether County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Meriwether County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Meriwether County, three score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Meriwether County ranks 2nd of the eight; Talbot County is highest, at 39.7%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Talbot County, GA | 99 | 22.0% | 39.7% |
| Spalding County, GA | 95 | 16.4% | 31.6% |
| Upson County, GA | 92 | 16.3% | 31.5% |
| Meriwether County, GA | 87 | 17.8% | 32.8% |
| Troup County, GA | 86 | 14.9% | 27.4% |
| Pike County, GA | 43 | 8.4% | 20.4% |
| Coweta County, GA | 41 | 7.3% | 16.6% |
| Harris County, GA | 31 | 8.8% | 21.0% |
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 Meriwether County the poorest county in Georgia?
No, Meriwether County's poverty rate was 17.8% in 2024, 73rd 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, Meriwether County ranks 62nd of 159 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Meriwether 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 Meriwether 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 Meriwether County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.