In Fayette County, Iowa, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Fayette County, 17.7% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 81% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 80% of U.S. counties.
What drives Fayette County's score
In Fayette County, income and the safety net is the highest-scoring part, at 45.0. Late payments on loans are the lowest part, at 18.3. People with a car or retail loan behind: 2.6%, August 2025, lower than in 90% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Fayette 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.
Fayette County isn't among the worst-off quarter of U.S. counties on any measure.
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 45.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Biggest factorPoverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line12.9% · 202447th percentile
- Children below the poverty line15.8% · 202443rd percentile
- People with a disability15.8% · 2020 to 202448th percentile
- People without health insurance5.6% · 2020 to 202426th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$63,625 · 202459th percentile
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- 39.5 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 rent19.8% · 2020 to 202460th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income17.7% · fiscal year 202718th percentile
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- 30.9 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.5% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202629th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working17.8% · 2020 to 202432nd percentile
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- 27.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector16.3% · August 202523rd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people88.5 · 202530th percentile
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- 18.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.3% · August 202515th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind2.6% · August 20259th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score35.1% · second quarter of 202629th 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 Fayette 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 Fayette County, 22.9% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Fayette County
Iowa
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Fayette County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 28.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Fayette County, Iowa, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 28.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Fayette County getting SNAP food aid fell most sharply on the way to its 2023 low, from 10.3% in 2022 to 8.2% in 2023.
The share of households in Fayette County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen to 8.3%
Low on the chart: 8.2% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Fayette County, Iowa.
How Fayette County has changed
Fayette County's population fell by about a third to 19,152, the lowest on the chart
Biggest drop: 1984 to 1989, reaching 21,845. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Fayette County, Iowa.
The number of jobs located in Fayette County rose most sharply from its first year (6,400 in 1990) to 7,529 in 1995.
The number of jobs located in Fayette County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 11% since
High on the chart: 7,812 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Fayette County, Iowa.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 4.4% | 2025 3.8% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 13.2% | 2024 12.9% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,821 | 2024 $63,625 |
The table uses 3.8% for 2025; the score uses 3.5% 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 Fayette County's history
1837
December 21, 1837 (created) August 26, 1850 (organized). Wikipedia
1900
The county's largest recorded population was the 1900 Census count of 29,845. The 2020 Census counted 19,509, 65% of the peak. Census Bureau
1968
A tornado in May 1968 did $25 million in property damage and killed five people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1971
A tornado in June 1971 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flood in June 2008 did $3.1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2008
A flood in June 2008 did $3.6 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1968
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Fayette County, 17 of them for flooding. FEMA
Fayette County beside its neighbors
Fayette County scores higher than all five counties that border it. Of the group, Fayette County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (28.7%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fayette County, IA | 19 | 12.9% | 28.7% |
| Clayton County, IA | 7 | 9.7% | 23.8% |
| Buchanan County, IA | 4 | 10.5% | 21.3% |
| Chickasaw County, IA | 1 | 9.2% | 14.9% |
| Bremer County, IA | 0 | 7.2% | 19.8% |
| Winneshiek County, IA | 0 | 8.9% | 20.7% |
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 Fayette County the poorest county in Iowa?
No, Fayette County's poverty rate was 12.9% in 2024, 22nd highest of 99 in Iowa (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Decatur County, at 18.1%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Fayette County ranks 28th of 99 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Fayette 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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Iowa Legal Aid
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 Fayette 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 Fayette County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.