Jackson County, Iowa

County Distress Index: Healthy · 32.7 | 19,342 people · 53rd most distressed in Iowa

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Jackson County, IA ranks among the least distressed counties in the country at 32.7 — 2769th nationally out of 3144 counties. The primary driver is Employment & Wages, where unemployment is elevated, wages are low relative to housing costs, and business formation lags. Within Iowa, it ranks 53rd of 99 counties. Among its 5 neighboring counties, 3 show more distress.

The Numbers Behind the Score

The CDI measures five domains of financial distress. Jackson County's primary driver is Employment & Wages at 65.4 — above the national median.

Employment & Wages Primary driver 65.4
Unemployment Rate 64
Wage-to-Rent Ratio 45
Business Formation Rate 88
Housing Cost Burden 28.1
Rent-Burdened (30%+) 39
Severely Rent-Burdened (50%+) 41
Mortgage-Burdened (30%+) 30
Homeownership Rate 26
Rent-to-Income Ratio 5
Debt & Delinquency 26.3
Debt in Collections 17
Medical Debt 36
Student Loan Delinquency 45
Auto Loan Delinquency 5
Credit Card Delinquency 13
Bankruptcy Filing Rate 40
Income & Poverty 23.2
Poverty Rate 15
Income vs. State Median 30
Child Poverty Rate 25
Community Vulnerability 20.6
Uninsured Rate 22
Disability Rate 19

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

Neighbors and Peers

How Jackson County compares to its 5 neighboring counties and population peers.

Neighboring Counties

County Score Zone vs. Jackson County
Jackson County, IA 32.7 Healthy
Clinton County, IA 46.9 Normal +14.2
Carroll County, IL 44.3 Normal +11.6
Jo Daviess County, IL 32.8 Healthy +0.0
Dubuque County, IA 31.5 Healthy -1.2
Jones County, IA 28.9 Healthy -3.9

Population Peers

County Score Zone vs. Jackson County
Jo Daviess County, IL 32.8 Healthy +0.0
Charlevoix County, MI 32.7 Healthy -0.0
Fairfax city, VA 32.7 Healthy -0.0
Andrew County, MO 32.8 Healthy +0.1
Currituck County, NC 32.6 Healthy -0.1

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