In Noble County, Indiana, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Noble County, 16.9% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 87% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 71% of U.S. counties.
What drives Noble County's score
In Noble County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 57.7. Housing costs are the lowest part, at 18.4.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Noble 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.
Even so, Noble County is worse off than most counties on people without health insurance (12.6%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 57.7 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector21.2% · August 202542nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people191.9 · 202572nd percentile
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- 48.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.2% · August 202545th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind6.4% · August 202566th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score36.3% · second quarter of 202634th percentile
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- 37.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.8% · 202420th percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.1% · 202428th percentile
- People with a disability12.8% · 2020 to 202420th percentile
- People without health insurance12.6% · 2020 to 202481st percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$72,859 · 202433rd percentile
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- 25.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.2% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202618th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.9% · 2020 to 202432nd percentile
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- 18.4 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 rent13.4% · 2020 to 202424th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.9% · fiscal year 202712th 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 Noble 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 Noble County, 17.1% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Noble County
Indiana
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Noble County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 23.0% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about three times as much as benefit checks
In Noble County, Indiana, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 23.0%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Noble County getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 8.8% in 2011 to 10.3% in 2012.
The share of households in Noble County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about half
Biggest drop: 2017 to 2018, reaching 7.8%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Noble County, Indiana.
How Noble County has changed
Noble County's population rose by about half to 47,811, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1994 to 1999, reaching 45,733. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Noble County, Indiana.
The number of jobs located in Noble County rose most sharply from its first year (15,558 in 1990) to 19,831 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Noble County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and has since fallen by about a quarter
High on the chart: 21,747 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Noble County, Indiana.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 7.6% | 2025 3.4% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 6.0% | 2024 9.8% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,931 | 2024 $72,859 |
The table uses 3.4% for 2025; the score uses 3.2% 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 Noble County's history
1835
February 7, 1835 (authorized) 1836 (organized). Wikipedia
1974
A tornado in April 1974 did $25 million in property damage and killed three people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1974
A tornado in April 1974 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
1992
A tornado in July 1992 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1997
A thunderstorm in May 1997 did $4 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
The county's largest recorded population was the 2010 Census count of 47,536. The 2020 Census counted 47,457, 100% of the peak. Census Bureau
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Since 1974
16 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Noble County, 7 of them for flooding. FEMA
Noble County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Noble County, three score higher. Of the group, Noble County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (23.0%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elkhart County, IN | 56 | 10.8% | 19.4% |
| Allen County, IN | 49 | 12.3% | 20.0% |
| Kosciusko County, IN | 32 | 9.7% | 20.2% |
| Noble County, IN | 28 | 9.8% | 23.0% |
| DeKalb County, IN | 20 | 8.9% | 22.6% |
| LaGrange County, IN | 17 | 8.4% | 14.8% |
| Whitley County, IN | 15 | 8.2% | 22.1% |
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 Noble County the poorest county in Indiana?
No, Noble County's poverty rate was 9.8% in 2024, 64th 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, Noble County ranks 62nd of 92 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Noble 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.
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 Noble County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.