Benefit checks make up 31 cents of every dollar of income in Miami County, Indiana
In Miami County, 30.7% of all the income people there received came from benefit checks. That is higher than in 67% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 60% of U.S. counties.
What drives Miami County's score
In Miami County, collections and bankruptcy weighs most: the score for collections and bankruptcy is 77.2. Bankruptcy filings ran at 305.1 per 100,000 people (2025), higher than in 91% of U.S. counties. Late payments on loans come next, at 68.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Miami 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.
Miami County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (19.0%, fiscal year 2027) and people without health insurance (6.9%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 77.2 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector26.7% · August 202562nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people305.1 · 202591st percentile
-
- 68.4 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.3% · August 202562nd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.6% · August 202579th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score43.7% · second quarter of 202662nd percentile
-
- 53.8 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.7% · 202446th percentile
- Children below the poverty line18.3% · 202456th percentile
- People with a disability17.9% · 2020 to 202467th percentile
- People without health insurance6.9% · 2020 to 202441st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$63,980 · 202457th percentile
-
- 48.1 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 202641st percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working21.5% · 2020 to 202454th percentile
-
- 37.1 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 rent16.8% · 2020 to 202442nd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.0% · fiscal year 202732nd 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 Miami 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 Miami County, 18.2% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Miami County
Indiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Miami County, benefit checks' share of income has grown to about five times its 1969 level, reaching 30.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in nearly twice as much as benefit checks
In Miami County, Indiana, benefit checks' share of income grew to about five times its 1969 level by 2024, reaching 30.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Miami County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 13.9% in 2012 to 16.0% in 2013.
The share of households in Miami County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 9.9% 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, Miami County, Indiana.
How Miami County has changed
Miami County's population fell 9% from 1969 to 2024, with most of the change between 1989 and 1994
High on the chart: 40,872 in 1974. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Miami County, Indiana.
The number of jobs located in Miami County had its largest drop, from 10,702 in 2005 to 8,877 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Miami County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 17% since
High on the chart: 10,959 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Miami County, Indiana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.0% | 2025 4.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 10.0% | 2024 12.7% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $24,644 | 2024 $63,980 |
The table uses 4.4% 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 Miami County's history
1832
Miami County was formed in 1832 from Cass County and unorganized land. Wikipedia
1980
The county's largest recorded population was the 1980 Census count of 39,820. The 2020 Census counted 35,962, 90% of the peak. Census Bureau
1998
A flash flood in July 1998 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2004
A tornado in May 2004 did $6 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1991
15 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Miami County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Miami County beside its neighbors
Of the five counties that border Miami County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Miami County ranks 3rd of the six; Grant County is highest, at 35.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grant County, IN | 82 | 17.9% | 35.4% |
| Howard County, IN | 80 | 13.6% | 30.5% |
| Fulton County, IN | 60 | 11.8% | 27.0% |
| Miami County, IN | 60 | 12.7% | 30.7% |
| Cass County, IN | 58 | 13.7% | 31.9% |
| Wabash County, IN | 29 | 10.7% | 30.7% |
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 Miami County the poorest county in Indiana?
No, Miami County's poverty rate was 12.7% in 2024, 31st 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, Miami County ranks 18th of 92 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Miami 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.
-
Indiana Legal Services (ILS)
Legal aid
-
Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic
Legal aid
-
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.
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 Miami County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.