In Jasper County, Iowa, rent on a two-bedroom takes about one in six dollars of the typical household's income
In Jasper County, 15.9% of the typical household's income would go to rent on a two-bedroom. That is lower than in 93% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 81% of U.S. counties.
What drives Jasper County's score
In Jasper County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 51.0. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 21.0. About one in 22 people (4.5%, 2020 to 2024) has no health insurance, a lower share than in 86% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Jasper 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.
Jasper 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.
- 51.0 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 people147.7 · 202559th percentile
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- 38.6 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind5.4% · August 202549th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.9% · August 202531st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score36.5% · second quarter of 202635th percentile
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- 24.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202622nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working16.8% · 2020 to 202425th percentile
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- 22.5 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 rent16.2% · 2020 to 202438th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income15.9% · fiscal year 20276th percentile
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- 21.0 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line9.3% · 202417th percentile
- Children below the poverty line10.3% · 202414th percentile
- People with a disability14.0% · 2020 to 202430th percentile
- People without health insurance4.5% · 2020 to 202413th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$74,790 · 202429th 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 Jasper 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 Jasper County, 19.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Jasper County
Iowa
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Jasper County, benefit checks' share of income has tripled since 1969, reaching 24.4% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in more than twice as much as benefit checks
In Jasper County, Iowa, benefit checks' share of income tripled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 24.4%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
SNAP food aid is one of the benefit checks counted in the income totals above.
The share of households in Jasper County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2013 and has since fallen by about half
Biggest drop: 2023 to 2024, reaching 7.4%. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Jasper County, Iowa.
How Jasper County has changed
Jasper County's population had its largest drop, from 36,789 in 1979 to 35,024 in 1984.
Jasper County's population rose 8% from 1969 to 2024, reaching its highest on the chart
High on the chart: 38,107 in 2024. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Jasper County, Iowa.
The number of jobs located in Jasper County had its largest drop, from 14,974 in 2000 to 12,704 in 2005.
The number of jobs located in Jasper County was at its highest on the chart in 2000 and is down 29% since
High on the chart: 14,974 in 2000. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Jasper County, Iowa.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.6% | 2025 3.6% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.7% | 2024 9.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $28,891 | 2024 $74,790 |
The table uses 3.6% for 2025; the score uses 3.3% 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 Jasper County's history
1846
Organized 1846. Wikipedia
1938
Maytag strike in Newton on 1938 with martial law declared. Wikipedia
1978
A tornado in September 1978 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1986
A tornado in September 1986 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2002
A thunderstorm in March 2002 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 37,813, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2022
A tornado in March 2022 did $50 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1969
18 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Jasper County, 12 of them for flooding. FEMA
Jasper County beside its neighbors
Of the six counties that border Jasper County, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Jasper County ranks 2nd of the seven; Marshall County is highest, at 27.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polk County, IA | 23 | 10.2% | 16.5% |
| Marshall County, IA | 22 | 12.4% | 27.8% |
| Jasper County, IA | 18 | 9.3% | 24.4% |
| Poweshiek County, IA | 18 | 11.8% | 21.7% |
| Story County, IA | 9 | 15.9% | 16.1% |
| Mahaska County, IA | 6 | 11.6% | 22.9% |
| Marion County, IA | 4 | 9.8% | 19.9% |
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 Jasper County the poorest county in Iowa?
No, Jasper County's poverty rate was 9.3% in 2024, 74th 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, Jasper County ranks 32nd of 99 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Jasper 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 Jasper 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 Jasper County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.