About two in five people with a credit file in Wayne County, Georgia, have unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Wayne County, 37.8% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 90% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 88% of U.S. counties.
What drives Wayne County's score
In Wayne County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 87.7. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 84.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Wayne 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.
Wayne County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.3%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (19.8%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 87.7 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind8.0% · August 202584th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind9.6% · August 202590th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score54.0% · second quarter of 202687th percentile
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- 84.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector37.8% · August 202590th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people213.6 · 202577th percentile
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- 81.1 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line18.6% · 202482nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line25.0% · 202482nd percentile
- People with a disability19.2% · 2020 to 202475th percentile
- People without health insurance20.0% · 2020 to 202496th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$60,717 · 202468th percentile
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- 59.8 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 rent23.4% · 2020 to 202479th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.8% · fiscal year 202739th percentile
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- 53.7 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 202624th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working27.4% · 2020 to 202482nd 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 Wayne 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 Wayne County, 16.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Wayne County
Georgia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Wayne County had its largest rise, from 22.2% in 2004 to 27.8% in 2009.
In Wayne County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 32.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Wayne County, Georgia, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 32.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Wayne County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 19.8% in 2018 to 17.2% in 2019.
The share of households in Wayne County getting SNAP food aid rose from 2009 to 2024, reaching 20.2%
High on the chart: 21.6% in 2017. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Wayne County, Georgia.
How Wayne County has changed
Wayne County's population doubled to 32,132, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1989 to 1994, reaching 24,334. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Wayne County, Georgia.
The number of jobs located in Wayne County had its largest drop, from 9,052 in 2005 to 8,039 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Wayne County rose 16% from 1990 to 2025
High on the chart: 9,283 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Wayne County, Georgia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.4% | 2025 3.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 20.3% | 2024 18.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,378 | 2024 $60,717 |
The table uses 3.5% 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 Wayne County's history
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 30,144, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2020
According to the 2020 U.S. census, the population of Wayne County was 30,144. New Georgia Encyclopedia
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Since 1977
19 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Wayne County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Wayne County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Wayne County, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Wayne County ranks 4th of the eight; McIntosh County is highest, at 34.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| McIntosh County, GA | 89 | 16.5% | 34.3% |
| Wayne County, GA | 88 | 18.6% | 32.0% |
| Tattnall County, GA | 80 | 24.1% | 30.4% |
| Appling County, GA | 76 | 16.9% | 28.3% |
| Brantley County, GA | 76 | 15.6% | 33.1% |
| Glynn County, GA | 71 | 13.9% | 22.1% |
| Long County, GA | 70 | 13.8% | 26.9% |
| Pierce County, GA | 70 | 17.2% | 32.9% |
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 Wayne County the poorest county in Georgia?
No, Wayne County's poverty rate was 18.6% in 2024, 68th 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, Wayne County ranks 56th of 159 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Wayne 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 Wayne County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.