Benefit checks make up 34 cents of every dollar of income in Jennings County, Indiana
In Jennings County, 34.0% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 80% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 56% of U.S. counties.
What drives Jennings County's score
In Jennings County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 79.5. Bankruptcy filings ran at 369.3 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 95% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 61.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Jennings 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.
Jennings County does better than most counties on two measures: unemployment rate, average over the latest year (3.1%, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026) and rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (19.0%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 79.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector27.0% · August 202563rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people369.3 · 202595th percentile
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- 61.2 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.2% · August 202544th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.8% · August 202570th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score45.3% · second quarter of 202667th percentile
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- 56.6 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line13.1% · 202449th percentile
- Children below the poverty line16.8% · 202448th percentile
- People with a disability18.7% · 2020 to 202472nd percentile
- People without health insurance9.1% · 2020 to 202460th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$65,766 · 202452nd percentile
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- 39.3 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 rent17.6% · 2020 to 202447th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.0% · fiscal year 202731st percentile
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- 35.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.1% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202617th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.3% · 2020 to 202453rd 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 Jennings 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 Jennings County, 17.5% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Jennings County
Indiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Jennings County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about four times its 1969 level, reaching 34.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Jennings County, Indiana, benefit checks' share of income grew to about four times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 34.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Jennings County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 10.6% in 2012 to 14.6% in 2013.
The share of households in Jennings County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about half
Low on the chart: 7.7% in 2020. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Jennings County, Indiana.
How Jennings County has changed
Jennings County's population had its largest rise, from 19,226 in 1969 to 21,372 in 1974.
Jennings County's population rose 44% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 28,546 in 2009. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Jennings County, Indiana.
The number of jobs located in Jennings County rose most sharply from its first year (6,089 in 1990) to 7,793 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Jennings County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 10% since
High on the chart: 8,787 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Jennings County, Indiana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.4% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 12.5% | 2024 13.1% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,420 | 2024 $65,766 |
The table uses 3.6% for 2025; the score uses 3.1% 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 Jennings County's history
1817
Formed in 1817. Wikipedia
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 28,525. The 2020 Census counted 27,613, 97% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1968
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Jennings County, 9 of them for flooding. FEMA
Jennings County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Jennings County, one scores higher. Of the group, Jennings County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (34.0%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scott County, IN | 68 | 15.0% | 31.4% |
| Jennings County, IN | 56 | 13.1% | 34.0% |
| Jefferson County, IN | 48 | 14.2% | 29.7% |
| Bartholomew County, IN | 39 | 8.4% | 17.7% |
| Jackson County, IN | 39 | 11.3% | 22.4% |
| Decatur County, IN | 34 | 10.4% | 24.4% |
| Ripley County, IN | 27 | 9.6% | 23.3% |
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 Jennings County the poorest county in Indiana?
No, Jennings County's poverty rate was 13.1% in 2024, 29th 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, Jennings County ranks 22nd of 92 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Jennings 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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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 Jennings 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 Jennings County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.