About one in 10 people with a credit file in Valley County, Idaho, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Valley County, 10.5% 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 86% of U.S. counties.
What drives Valley County's score
In Valley County, jobs are the highest-scoring part, at 73.8. Collections and bankruptcy is the lowest part, at 5.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Valley 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, Valley County is worse off than most counties on adults 25 to 54 not working (30.4%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 73.8 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202657th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working30.4% · 2020 to 202490th percentile
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- 21.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.8% · 202413th percentile
- Children below the poverty line9.7% · 202411th percentile
- People with a disability10.9% · 2020 to 20247th percentile
- People without health insurance8.8% · 2020 to 202457th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$82,595 · 202416th percentile
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- 20.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind1.8% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.3% · August 202551st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score24.7% · second quarter of 20265th or lower percentile
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- 14.2 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 rent6.0% · 2020 to 20245th or lower percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income18.2% · fiscal year 202723rd percentile
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- 5.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector10.5% · August 20255th or lower percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people39.5 · 20255th 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 Valley 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 Valley County, 27.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Valley County
Idaho
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Valley County had its largest rise, from 15.6% in 2004 to 19.4% in 2009.
In Valley County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 18.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Valley County, Idaho, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 18.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Valley County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 10.0% in 2018 to 7.0% in 2019.
The share of households in Valley County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2018 and has since fallen to 3.1%
Low on the chart: 2.2% in 2022. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Valley County, Idaho.
How Valley County has changed
Valley County's population more than tripled to 12,777, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2004 to 2009, reaching 9,975. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Valley County, Idaho.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Valley County doubled to 5,740, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 5,740. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Valley County, Idaho.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 8.5% | 2025 4.5% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.8% | 2024 8.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $25,428 | 2024 $82,595 |
The table uses 4.5% for 2025; the score uses 4.2% 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 Valley County's history
1893
Gold discovery and mining in Thunder Mountain area (1893). Wikipedia
1917
Established February 26, 1917. Wikipedia
1948
Cascade Dam completed (1948). Wikipedia
2001
Boise Cascade sawmill closed (2001). Wikipedia
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 11,746, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1997
8 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Valley County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Valley County beside its neighbors
All six counties that border Valley County score higher than it does. Of the group, Valley County gets the smallest share of its income from benefit checks; Idaho County gets the largest, at 32.3%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Custer County, ID | 41 | 14.7% | 26.9% |
| Adams County, ID | 39 | 12.4% | 29.2% |
| Lemhi County, ID | 29 | 14.2% | 31.2% |
| Idaho County, ID | 26 | 14.0% | 32.3% |
| Gem County, ID | 24 | 12.3% | 28.1% |
| Boise County, ID | 23 | 10.0% | 23.7% |
| 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 Valley County the poorest county in Idaho?
No, Valley County's poverty rate was 8.8% in 2024, 39th 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, Valley County ranks 38th of 44 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Valley 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.
Download the CSV for Valley 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 Valley County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.