About two in five people with a credit file in Newton County, Georgia, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Newton County, 39.7% 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 90% of U.S. counties.
What drives Newton County's score
In Newton County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 95.8. Bankruptcy filings ran at 466.1 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 97% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 94.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Newton 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.
Newton County does better than most counties on two measures: median household income ($80,129, 2024) and people with a disability (14.3%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 95.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector39.7% · August 202593rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people466.1 · 202597th percentile
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- 94.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind12.3% · August 202598th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind10.9% · August 202594th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score55.9% · second quarter of 202690th percentile
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- 92.5 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 rent29.2% · 2020 to 202496th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income26.4% · fiscal year 202789th percentile
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- 49.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202649th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working20.6% · 2020 to 202449th percentile
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- 45.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line11.9% · 202439th percentile
- Children below the poverty line19.0% · 202460th percentile
- People with a disability14.3% · 2020 to 202433rd percentile
- People without health insurance11.3% · 2020 to 202474th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$80,129 · 202420th 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 Newton 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 Newton County, 13.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Newton County
Georgia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Newton County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 25.2% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Newton County, Georgia, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 25.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Newton County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 18.4% in 2019 to 15.4% in 2020.
The share of households in Newton County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 10.2% 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, Newton County, Georgia.
How Newton County has changed
Newton County's population had its largest rise, from 59,506 in 1999 to 80,603 in 2004.
Newton County's population grew to about five times its 1969 size in 2024, reaching 124,010, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 34,127. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Newton County, Georgia.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Newton County more than doubled to 27,786, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2010 to 2015, reaching 22,859. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Newton County, Georgia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.9% | 2025 4.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.1% | 2024 11.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $26,944 | 2024 $80,129 |
The table uses 4.1% for 2025; the score uses 4.0% 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 Newton County's history
1821
Created on December 24, 1821. Wikipedia
1995
A thunderstorm in May 1995 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2013
Hail in March 2013 did $1.22 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A thunderstorm in June 2018 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 112,483, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2023
A tornado in January 2023 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1977
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Newton County, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Newton County beside its neighbors
Newton County scores higher than all six counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Newton 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% |
| Rockdale County, GA | 89 | 11.8% | 26.4% |
| Henry County, GA | 78 | 8.2% | 21.0% |
| Jasper County, GA | 74 | 13.2% | 24.7% |
| Walton County, GA | 68 | 9.8% | 19.3% |
| Butts County, GA | 66 | 13.4% | 28.7% |
| Morgan County, GA | 51 | 10.6% | 20.8% |
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 Newton County the poorest county in Georgia?
No, Newton County's poverty rate was 11.9% in 2024, 121st 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, Newton County ranks 43rd of 159 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Newton 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 Newton 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 Newton County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.