In Jasper County, Illinois, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income

In Jasper County, 15.6% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 94% of U.S. counties.

Photo of Ross Kilburn
Data from
County Distress Index Data through Sep 2026
96th
of 102 counties in Illinois
6score /100

Less distressed than 93% of U.S. counties.

What drives Jasper County's score

In Jasper County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 31.4. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 5.2. About one in 24 renters (4.1%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a lower share than in 95% of U.S. counties.

The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Jasper 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.

Jasper 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.

  • Income and safety net

    Biggest factor
    31.4 of 100

    Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey

    • People below the poverty line
      11.3% · 2024
      33rd percentile
    • Children below the poverty line
      14.1% · 2024
      34th percentile
    • People with a disability
      14.6% · 2020 to 2024
      36th percentile
    • People without health insurance
      5.0% · 2020 to 2024
      19th percentile
    • Median household income (lower income, longer bar)
      $72,816 · 2024
      33rd percentile

  • Jobs

    27.4 of 100

    Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey

    • Unemployment rate, average over the latest year
      3.7% · Oct 2025 to Sep 2026
      42nd percentile
    • Adults 25 to 54 not working
      14.0% · 2020 to 2024
      12th percentile

  • Late payments

    22.2 of 100

    Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026

    • People with a credit card behind
      3.0% · August 2025
      11th percentile
    • People with a car or retail loan behind
      3.8% · August 2025
      28th percentile
    • People with a subprime credit score
      34.2% · second quarter of 2026
      26th percentile

  • Collections and bankruptcy

    21.1 of 100

    Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025

    • People with unpaid debt sent to a collector
      13.2% · August 2025
      12th percentile
    • Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people
      87.5 · 2025
      29th percentile

  • Housing costs

    5.2 of 100

    Renters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027

    • Renters paying half their income or more in rent
      4.1% · 2020 to 2024
      5th or lower percentile
    • Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income
      15.6% · fiscal year 2027
      5th percentile

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 Jasper 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 Jasper County, 21.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.

Cents of every dollar of income, 2024

Jasper County

57 17 26

Illinois

62 21 17

United States

61 21 18
  • Pay from work
  • Investments and rent
  • Benefit checks
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4), shares of all personal income received by residents, 2024. Pay from work is total income minus the other two, so the three add to 100.

In Jasper County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 26.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks

In Jasper County, Illinois, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 26.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.

  • Benefit checks
  • Pay from work
0%40%80% 196919741979198419891994199920042009201420192024 0%40%80% 196919791989199920092024
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4), shares of all personal income received by residents, Jasper County, Illinois American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/illinois/jasper-county-il/
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The share of households in Jasper County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise in the last span, from 11.3% in 2023 to 14.0% in 2024.

The share of households in Jasper County getting SNAP food aid fell to its lowest on the chart in 2011, then climbed past the 2009 level

Low on the chart: 8.0% in 2011. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Jasper County, Illinois.

0%10%20% 9.5%14.0% 2009201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024 0%10%20% 9.5%14.0% 20092011201320152017201920212024
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/illinois/jasper-county-il/
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How Jasper County has changed

Jasper County's population had its largest drop, from 11,289 in 1984 to 10,688 in 1989.

Jasper County's population fell 16% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its lowest on the chart

High on the chart: 11,305 in 1979. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Jasper County, Illinois.

010,00020,000 10,8339,092 196919741979198419891994199920042009201420192024 010,00020,000 10,8339,092 196919791989199920092024
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/illinois/jasper-county-il/
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The number of jobs located in Jasper County fell most sharply after its 1995 high, from 3,391 in 1995 to 2,616 in 2000.

The number of jobs located in Jasper County fell by about a third from 1990 to 2025, reaching 2,147, with its low point on the chart in 2020

Low on the chart: 1,958 in 2020. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Jasper County, Illinois.

02,0004,000 3,2922,147 19901995200020052010201520202025 02,0004,000 3,2922,147 19901995200020052010201520202025
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/illinois/jasper-county-il/
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MeasureThenNowSource
Unemployment rateBLS LAUS 1990 5.7% 2025 3.6% BLS LAUS
People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE 1989 10.5% 2024 11.3% Census SAIPE
Median household incomeCensus SAIPE 1989 $22,913 2024 $72,816 Census SAIPE

The table uses 3.6% for 2025; the score uses 3.7% 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 Jasper County's history

  1. 1831

    Formed in 1831 out of Clay and Crawford Counties. Wikipedia

  2. 1900

    The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 20,160. The 2020 Census counted 9,287, 46% of the peak. Census Bureau

  3. Since 1990

    9 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Jasper County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA

Jasper County beside its neighbors

Of the six counties that border Jasper County, five score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Jasper County ranks 4th of the seven; Clay County is highest, at 33.9%.

CountyDistress scoreScoreRank in its state Poverty rateBenefit checks, share of incomeBenefit checks
Clay County, IL 33 55th of 102 14.0% 33.9%
Richland County, IL 28 66th of 102 13.0% 28.9%
Crawford County, IL 27 67th of 102 14.5% 24.2%
Clark County, IL 27 68th of 102 11.0% 28.8%
Cumberland County, IL 12 93rd of 102 9.8% 13.5%
Jasper County, IL 6 96th of 102 11.3% 26.0%
Effingham County, IL 5 99th of 102 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 Jasper County the poorest county in Illinois?

No, Jasper County's poverty rate was 11.3% in 2024, 60th 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, Jasper County ranks 96th of 102 in the state.

If you're behind on your mortgage in Jasper 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.

Illinois foreclosure guide →

The score, its 14 measures and their sources, in one file. Free to use with credit to American Default Research.

Download the CSV for Jasper County · Every U.S. county (CSV)

Cite this Jasper County, Illinois, scores 6 on the County Distress Index (data through Sep 2026): less distressed than 93% of U.S. counties · American Default Research · americandefault.org/counties/illinois/jasper-county-il/

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 Jasper County comes from, 2024.
  • History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.