Buena Vista County, Iowa

County Distress Index: Healthy · 33.9 | 20,567 people · 45th most distressed in Iowa

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Buena Vista County, IA ranks among the least distressed counties in the country at 33.9 — 2707th nationally out of 3144 counties. The primary driver is Income & Poverty, where income and poverty levels indicate moderate economic strain. Within Iowa, it ranks 45th of 99 counties. Among its 8 neighboring counties, 7 show less distress.

The Numbers Behind the Score

The CDI measures five domains of financial distress. Buena Vista County's primary driver is Income & Poverty at 48.0 — above the national median.

Income & Poverty Primary driver 48.0
Poverty Rate 39
Income vs. State Median 61
Child Poverty Rate 43
Employment & Wages 36.1
Unemployment Rate 4
Wage-to-Rent Ratio 26
Business Formation Rate 78
Debt & Delinquency 34.3
Debt in Collections 28
Medical Debt 25
Student Loan Delinquency 55
Auto Loan Delinquency 45
Credit Card Delinquency 24
Bankruptcy Filing Rate 30
Housing Cost Burden 32.5
Rent-Burdened (30%+) 21
Severely Rent-Burdened (50%+) 21
Mortgage-Burdened (30%+) 38
Homeownership Rate 60
Rent-to-Income Ratio 23
Community Vulnerability 18.6
Uninsured Rate 35
Disability Rate 2

Scores are percentile-based: 50 = national median, higher = more distressed. The median line is shown on each bar.

Neighbors and Peers

How Buena Vista County compares to its 8 neighboring counties and population peers.

Neighboring Counties

County Score Zone vs. Buena Vista County
Buena Vista County, IA 33.9 Healthy
Pocahontas County, IA 34.0 Healthy +0.2
Cherokee County, IA 32.4 Healthy -1.5
Clay County, IA 31.7 Healthy -2.2
Palo Alto County, IA 30.7 Healthy -3.2
Calhoun County, IA 29.1 Healthy -4.8
O'Brien County, IA 27.3 Healthy -6.6
Ida County, IA 23.6 Healthy -10.2
Sac County, IA 21.8 Healthy -12.1

Population Peers

County Score Zone vs. Buena Vista County
Morrison County, MN 33.9 Healthy +0.0
Richland County, ND 33.9 Healthy -0.0
Barnes County, ND 33.9 Healthy +0.1
Pierce County, WI 34.0 Healthy +0.1
Campbell County, WY 34.0 Healthy +0.1

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