About one in six people in Wapello County, Iowa, lives below the poverty line
In Wapello County, 15.6% of people lived below the poverty line. That is higher than in 68% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 63% of U.S. counties.
What drives Wapello County's score
In Wapello County, late payments on loans weigh most: the score for late payments on loans is 68.5. People with a car or retail loan behind: 7.1%, August 2025, higher than in 75% of U.S. counties. Housing costs come next, at 60.2.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Wapello 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.
Wapello County does better than most counties on two measures: rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (19.2%, fiscal year 2027) and adults 25 to 54 not working (19.5%, 2020 to 2024).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 68.5 of 100
Late payments
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind6.5% · August 202566th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind7.1% · August 202575th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score44.1% · second quarter of 202663rd percentile
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- 60.2 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 rent25.1% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income19.2% · fiscal year 202733rd percentile
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- 59.6 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector28.1% · August 202568th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people128 · 202551st percentile
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- 56.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line15.6% · 202468th percentile
- Children below the poverty line21.4% · 202470th percentile
- People with a disability16.1% · 2020 to 202451st percentile
- People without health insurance7.3% · 2020 to 202444th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$67,370 · 202448th percentile
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- 46.7 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year4.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202650th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working19.5% · 2020 to 202442nd 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 Wapello 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 Wapello County, 18.4% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Wapello County
Iowa
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Wapello County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 30.3% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in twice as much as benefit checks
In Wapello County, Iowa, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 30.3%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Wapello County getting SNAP food aid rose most sharply from its first year (14.7% in 2009) to 17.4% in 2010.
The share of households in Wapello County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2014 and has since fallen by about a quarter
Low on the chart: 14.7% 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, Wapello County, Iowa.
How Wapello County has changed
Wapello County's population had its largest drop, from 38,815 in 1984 to 35,674 in 1989.
Wapello County's population fell 16% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 42,451 in 1969. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Wapello County, Iowa.
The number of jobs located in Wapello County had its largest drop, from 17,617 in 2005 to 15,671 in 2010.
The number of jobs located in Wapello County was at its highest on the chart in 2005 and is down 13% since
High on the chart: 17,617 in 2005. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Wapello County, Iowa.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 6.1% | 2025 4.3% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.2% | 2024 15.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $22,423 | 2024 $67,370 |
The table uses 4.3% for 2025; the score uses 4.0% 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 Wapello County's history
1851
Town severely damaged by flood in 1851. Wikipedia
1857
Coal mining began in 1857 at McCready bank. Wikipedia
1868
Brown and Godfrey drift mine opened 1868 employed 300 men producing 77,000 tons by 1872. Wikipedia
1889
By 1889 15 coal mine shafts operating in Ottumwa. Wikipedia
1914
Phillips Fuel Company produced over 100,000 tons of coal in 1914 ranking among top 24 in state. Wikipedia
1950
The county's largest recorded population was the 1950 Census count of 47,397. The 2020 Census counted 35,437, 75% of the peak. Census Bureau
1973
John Morrell & Company meatpacking complex significant to Ottumwa development from 1877 to 1973. Wikipedia
1982
A tornado in September 1982 did $2.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
1988
A tornado in May 1988 did $25 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2001
A tornado in April 2001 killed two people. NOAA Storm Events Database
2010
A flood in August 2010 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1965
20 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Wapello County, 15 of them for flooding. FEMA
Wapello County beside its neighbors
Wapello County scores higher than all five counties that border it. Of the group, Wapello County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (30.3%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wapello County, IA | 63 | 15.6% | 30.3% |
| Jefferson County, IA | 46 | 14.0% | 27.1% |
| Keokuk County, IA | 24 | 11.5% | 25.7% |
| Monroe County, IA | 18 | 11.3% | 25.2% |
| Davis County, IA | 10 | 10.4% | 21.3% |
| Mahaska County, IA | 6 | 11.6% | 22.9% |
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 Wapello County the poorest county in Iowa?
No, Wapello County's poverty rate was 15.6% in 2024, 6th 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, Wapello County ranks 1st of 99 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Wapello 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 Wapello 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 Wapello County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.