In Effingham County, Illinois, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in seven dollars of the typical household's income
In Effingham County, 13.7% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 94% of U.S. counties.
What drives Effingham County's score
In Effingham County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 25.9. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 8.5.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Effingham 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.
Effingham County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 26.0 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.1% · August 202519th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people93.2 · 202532nd percentile
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- 25.8 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.8% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202646th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working11.6% · 2020 to 20245th percentile
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- 24.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.6% · August 202533rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.1% · August 202516th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score33.1% · second quarter of 202622nd percentile
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- 18.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line8.1% · 20248th percentile
- Children below the poverty line8.9% · 20249th percentile
- People with a disability14.3% · 2020 to 202433rd percentile
- People without health insurance5.3% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$81,668 · 202417th percentile
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- 8.5 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 rent11.4% · 2020 to 202416th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income13.7% · fiscal year 20270th 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 Effingham 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 Effingham County, 18.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Effingham County
Illinois
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Effingham County, benefit checks' share of income has doubled since 1969, reaching 19.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Effingham County, Illinois, benefit checks' share of income doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 19.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Effingham County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 8.3% in 2013 to 10.2% in 2014.
The share of households in Effingham County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2023 and has since fallen to 12.2%
Low on the chart: 6.0% 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, Effingham County, Illinois.
How Effingham County has changed
Effingham County's population had its largest rise, from 26,841 in 1974 to 30,443 in 1979.
Effingham County's population rose 41% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 34,645 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Effingham County, Illinois.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Effingham County rose 43% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 19,204. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Effingham County, Illinois.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.7% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.7% | 2024 8.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,504 | 2024 $81,668 |
The table uses 3.6% for 2025; the score uses 3.8% 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 Effingham County's history
1831
Formed in 1831 from Fayette and Crawford counties. Wikipedia
1949
St. Anthony's Hospital fire. Wikipedia
1983
A tornado in May 1983 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 34,668, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1996
7 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Effingham County, 2 of them for flooding. FEMA
Effingham County beside its neighbors
All five counties that border Effingham County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Effingham County ranks 5th of the six; Clay County is highest, at 33.9%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fayette County, IL | 34 | 15.3% | 29.4% |
| Clay County, IL | 33 | 14.0% | 33.9% |
| Cumberland County, IL | 12 | 9.8% | 13.5% |
| Shelby County, IL | 8 | 8.8% | 26.0% |
| Jasper County, IL | 6 | 11.3% | 26.0% |
| Effingham County, IL | 5 | 8.1% | 19.0% |
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 Effingham County the poorest county in Illinois?
No, Effingham County's poverty rate was 8.1% in 2024, 88th highest of 102 in Illinois (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Alexander County, at 24.8%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Effingham County ranks 99th of 102 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Effingham 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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C.e.f.s. Economic Opportunity Corporation
HUD-approved housing counselor
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C.e.f.s. Effingham County Outreach Office
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Land of Lincoln Legal Aid
Legal aid
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Illinois Legal Aid Online (ILAO)
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 Effingham 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 Effingham County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.