About one in four people with a credit file in Elkhart County, Indiana, has unpaid debt sent to a collector
In Elkhart County, 24.9% of people with a credit file had unpaid debt sent to a collector. That is higher than in 55% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 56% of U.S. counties.
What drives Elkhart County's score
In Elkhart County, housing costs weigh most: the score for housing costs is 66.5. About one in four renters (23.0%, 2020 to 2024) pays half their income or more in rent, a higher share than in 77% of U.S. counties. Collections and bankruptcy comes next, at 66.3.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Elkhart 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.
Elkhart County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a disability (12.5%, 2020 to 2024) and unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.4%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 66.5 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent23.0% · 2020 to 202477th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income21.2% · fiscal year 202754th percentile
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- 66.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector24.9% · August 202556th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people205.9 · 202576th percentile
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- 56.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.6% · August 202553rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.6% · August 202568th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score39.6% · second quarter of 202647th percentile
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- 42.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.8% · 202429th percentile
- Children below the poverty line14.7% · 202437th percentile
- People with a disability12.5% · 2020 to 202418th percentile
- People without health insurance14.2% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$71,053 · 202438th percentile
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- 40.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202625th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.6% · 2020 to 202455th 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 Elkhart 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 Elkhart County, 15.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Elkhart County
Indiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
Benefit checks' share of income in Elkhart County had its largest rise, from 12.9% in 2004 to 22.8% in 2009.
In Elkhart County, benefit checks' share of income has more than tripled since 1969, reaching 19.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Elkhart County, Indiana, benefit checks' share of income more than tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 19.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Elkhart County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 11.9% in 2010 to 13.6% in 2011.
The share of households in Elkhart County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about half
Low on the chart: 6.9% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Elkhart County, Indiana.
How Elkhart County has changed
Elkhart County's population had its largest rise, from 166,498 in 1994 to 180,645 in 1999.
Elkhart County's population nearly doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 207,436, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2019 to 2024, reaching 207,436. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Elkhart County, Indiana.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Elkhart County rose 29% from 1990 to 2025, reaching its highest on the chart
Biggest drop: 2005 to 2010, reaching 100,139. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Elkhart County, Indiana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.3% | 2025 3.9% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.2% | 2024 10.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $30,029 | 2024 $71,053 |
The table uses 3.9% for 2025; the score uses 3.4% 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 Elkhart County's history
1965
A tornado in April 1965 killed 31 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1965
A tornado in April 1965 killed 31 people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2005
A thunderstorm in June 2005 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2007
A tornado in October 2007 did $11 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 207,047, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
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Since 1965
13 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Elkhart County, 4 of them for flooding. FEMA
Elkhart County beside its neighbors
Of the seven counties that border Elkhart County, in Indiana and Michigan, one scores higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Elkhart County ranks 7th of the eight; St. Joseph County is highest, at 26.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| St. Joseph County, IN | 63 | 15.4% | 22.1% |
| Elkhart County, IN | 56 | 10.8% | 19.4% |
| St. Joseph County, MI | 52 | 12.3% | 26.4% |
| Cass County, MI | 46 | 12.7% | 24.2% |
| Kosciusko County, IN | 32 | 9.7% | 20.2% |
| Noble County, IN | 28 | 9.8% | 23.0% |
| Marshall County, IN | 27 | 12.1% | 23.3% |
| LaGrange County, IN | 17 | 8.4% | 14.8% |
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 Elkhart County the poorest county in Indiana?
No, Elkhart County's poverty rate was 10.8% in 2024, 54th highest of 92 in Indiana (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Delaware County, at 20.5%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Elkhart County ranks 24th of 92 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Elkhart 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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Lacasa of Goshen, Inc.
HUD-approved housing counselor
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Indiana Legal Services (ILS)
Legal aid
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Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic
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 Elkhart 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 Elkhart County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.