About one in nine people in Polk County, Iowa, has a disability
In Polk County, 11.4% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 89% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 76% of U.S. counties.
What drives Polk County's score
In Polk County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 49.8. Jobs are the lowest part, at 19.3. About one in seven adults aged 25 to 54 (13.8%, 2020 to 2024) isn't working, a lower share than in 88% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Polk 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.
Polk 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.
- 49.8 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector20.8% · August 202541st percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people145.1 · 202558th percentile
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- 48.6 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 rent19.6% · 2020 to 202458th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.7% · fiscal year 202738th percentile
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- 32.7 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.8% · August 202538th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind4.3% · August 202537th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score33.1% · second quarter of 202622nd percentile
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- 20.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line10.2% · 202423rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line13.3% · 202429th percentile
- People with a disability11.4% · 2020 to 202410th percentile
- People without health insurance5.3% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$82,960 · 202416th percentile
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- 19.3 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.4% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202627th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working13.8% · 2020 to 202411th 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 Polk 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 Polk County, 14.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Polk County
Iowa
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Polk County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 16.5% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Polk County, Iowa, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 16.5%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Polk County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply from its first year (8.0% in 2009) to 9.5% in 2010.
The share of households in Polk County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and has since fallen by about a third
Low on the chart: 8.0% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Polk County, Iowa.
How Polk County has changed
Polk County's population had its largest rise, from 425,737 in 2009 to 460,515 in 2014.
Polk County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 516,185, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 302,350. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Polk County, Iowa.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Polk County rose by about half to 314,942, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 2020 to 2025, reaching 314,942. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Polk County, Iowa.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 3.3% | 2025 3.7% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 9.2% | 2024 10.2% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $31,061 | 2024 $82,960 |
The table uses 3.7% for 2025; the score uses 3.4% 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 Polk County's history
1843
Fort Des Moines constructed May 1843 by Captain James Allen to control Sauk and Meskwaki peoples, abandoned 1846 after their removal from state to Indian Territory. Wikipedia
1846
January 13, 1846 (created) March 1, 1846 (organized). Wikipedia
1851
Flood of 1851 in Des Moines: Des Moines and Raccoon Rivers rose to unprecedented height, inundated entire country east of Des Moines River, crops utterly destroyed, houses and fences swept away. Wikipedia
1974
A tornado in June 1974 did $25 million in property damage and killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
1998
A thunderstorm in June 1998 did $40 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2018
A flash flood in June 2018 did $1 million in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 492,401, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2022
A tornado in March 2022 did $75 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Polk County, 13 of them for flooding. FEMA
Polk County beside its neighbors
Polk County scores higher than all six counties that border it. For the share of income from benefit checks, Polk County ranks 5th of the seven; Jasper County is highest, at 24.4%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polk County, IA | 23 | 10.2% | 16.5% |
| Jasper County, IA | 18 | 9.3% | 24.4% |
| Story County, IA | 9 | 15.9% | 16.1% |
| Marion County, IA | 4 | 9.8% | 19.9% |
| Boone County, IA | 3 | 8.2% | 23.0% |
| Warren County, IA | 3 | 6.6% | 16.9% |
| Dallas County, IA | 1 | 5.2% | 9.0% |
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 Polk County the poorest county in Iowa?
No, Polk County's poverty rate was 10.2% in 2024, 63rd 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, Polk County ranks 21st of 99 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Polk 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.
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 Polk County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.