Fayette County, Iowa

County Distress Index: Normal · 43.5 | 19,210 people · 18th most distressed in Iowa

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Fayette County, IA falls within the normal range for household financial distress at 43.5 — 2122nd nationally out of 3144 counties. The primary driver is Income & Poverty, where income and poverty levels indicate moderate economic strain. Within Iowa, it ranks 18th 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. Fayette County's primary driver is Income & Poverty at 57.2 — above the national median.

Income & Poverty Primary driver 57.2
Poverty Rate 53
Income vs. State Median 73
Child Poverty Rate 46
Housing Cost Burden 54.9
Rent-Burdened (30%+) 54
Severely Rent-Burdened (50%+) 78
Mortgage-Burdened (30%+) 89
Homeownership Rate 35
Rent-to-Income Ratio 18
Employment & Wages 46.7
Unemployment Rate 45
Wage-to-Rent Ratio 27
Business Formation Rate 68
Community Vulnerability 34.6
Uninsured Rate 14
Disability Rate 55
Debt & Delinquency 24.0
Debt in Collections 24
Medical Debt 42
Student Loan Delinquency 23
Auto Loan Delinquency 10
Credit Card Delinquency 15
Bankruptcy Filing Rate 30

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

Neighbors and Peers

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

Neighboring Counties

County Score Zone vs. Fayette County
Fayette County, IA 43.5 Normal
Black Hawk County, IA 45.0 Normal +1.5
Clayton County, IA 39.5 Normal -4.0
Allamakee County, IA 38.6 Normal -4.9
Delaware County, IA 28.0 Healthy -15.5
Buchanan County, IA 27.1 Healthy -16.4
Chickasaw County, IA 26.0 Healthy -17.5
Bremer County, IA 20.6 Healthy -22.9
Winneshiek County, IA 19.8 Healthy -23.7

Population Peers

County Score Zone vs. Fayette County
Caledonia County, VT 43.5 Normal +0.0
Susquehanna County, PA 43.5 Normal +0.1
Paulding County, OH 43.5 Normal +0.1
Monroe County, WI 43.6 Normal +0.1
Butte County, SD 43.4 Normal -0.1

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