About one in nine people with a credit file in Lemhi County, Idaho, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Lemhi County, 10.7% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is lower than in 95% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 70% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lemhi County's score
In Lemhi County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 68.6. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 10.6.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lemhi 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, Lemhi County is worse off than most counties on people with a disability (23.7%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 68.6 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202663rd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working25.0% · 2020 to 202473rd percentile
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- 63.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line14.2% · 202458th percentile
- Children below the poverty line19.6% · 202462nd percentile
- People with a disability23.7% · 2020 to 202493rd percentile
- People without health insurance6.1% · 2020 to 202432nd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$59,959 · 202470th percentile
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- 36.2 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 rent12.7% · 2020 to 202421st percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income20.8% · fiscal year 202751st percentile
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- 12.4 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector10.7% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people71.1 · 202519th percentile
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- 10.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind1.2% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind0.0% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a subprime credit score32.8% · second quarter of 202621st 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 Lemhi 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 Lemhi County, 30.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lemhi County
Idaho
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Lemhi County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, but pay from work still brings in 38% more than benefit checks in 2024
In Lemhi County, Idaho, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 31.2%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lemhi County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 7.3% in 2019 to 11.6% in 2020.
The share of households in Lemhi County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 6.3% in 2018. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Lemhi County, Idaho.
How Lemhi County has changed
Lemhi County's population rose by about half to 8,397, the highest on the chart
Biggest drop: 1984 to 1989, reaching 6,773. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lemhi County, Idaho.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Lemhi County rose 43% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart, with most of the change between 1990 and 1995
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 2,488. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lemhi County, Idaho.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.9% | 2025 4.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 17.7% | 2024 14.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $20,249 | 2024 $59,959 |
The table uses 4.2% for 2025; the score uses 4.4% 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 Lemhi County's history
1866
Gold discovered at Leesburg on July 16, 1866 with rush ensuing within a month. Wikipedia
1869
Established January 9, 1869 (second creation, first being December 21, 1866, which was misplaced and never published). Wikipedia
1940
Gilmore and Pittsburgh Railroad ceased operations in 1940 after serving ore mining. Wikipedia
2003
A wildfire in July 2003 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
Lightning in August 2010 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 7,974, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1984
5 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lemhi County, 1 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lemhi County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Lemhi County, in Idaho and Montana, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Lemhi County ranks 2nd of the eight; Idaho County is highest, at 32.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Custer County, ID | 41 | 14.7% | 26.9% |
| Clark County, ID | 37 | 15.1% | 18.0% |
| Lemhi County, ID | 29 | 14.2% | 31.2% |
| Butte County, ID | 28 | 15.1% | 26.9% |
| Ravalli County, MT | 26 | 10.9% | 23.3% |
| Idaho County, ID | 26 | 14.0% | 32.3% |
| Beaverhead County, MT | 14 | 12.0% | 23.6% |
| Valley County, ID | 13 | 8.8% | 18.6% |
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 Lemhi County the poorest county in Idaho?
No, Lemhi County's poverty rate was 14.2% in 2024, 8th highest of 44 in Idaho (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Madison County, at 24.3%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Lemhi County ranks 21st of 44 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lemhi 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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Idaho Legal Aid Services, Inc.
Legal aid
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Idaho Volunteer Lawyers Program
Legal aid
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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 Lemhi County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.