About one in 15 people in Warren County, Iowa, lives below the poverty line
In Warren County, 6.6% of people lived below the poverty line. That is lower than in 97% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 96% of U.S. counties.
What drives Warren County's score
In Warren County, collections and bankruptcy is the highest-scoring part, at 40.3. Income and the safety net is the lowest part, at 4.5. About one in 50 people (2.0%, 2020 to 2024) has no health insurance, a lower share than in 99% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Warren 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.
Warren 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.
- 40.3 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Biggest factorCredit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector15.3% · August 202519th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people152.2 · 202560th percentile
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- 15.4 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 rent13.2% · 2020 to 202423rd percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income16.1% · fiscal year 20277th percentile
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- 12.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind3.5% · August 202517th percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.0% · August 202514th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score27.0% · second quarter of 20266th percentile
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- 11.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.0% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202612th percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working13.5% · 2020 to 202410th percentile
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- 4.5 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line6.6% · 20243rd percentile
- Children below the poverty line6.0% · 20242nd percentile
- People with a disability11.6% · 2020 to 202411th percentile
- People without health insurance2.0% · 2020 to 20240th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$101,640 · 20245th 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 Warren 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 Warren County, 16.7% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Warren County
Iowa
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Warren County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 16.9% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about four times as much as benefit checks
In Warren County, Iowa, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 16.9%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Warren County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 9.2% in 2019 to 7.8% in 2020.
The share of households in Warren 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: 6.0% 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, Warren County, Iowa.
How Warren County has changed
Warren County's population had its largest rise in the last span, from 51,849 in 2019 to 56,343 in 2024.
Warren County's population doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 56,343, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 1979 to 1984, reaching 34,778. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Warren County, Iowa.
The number of jobs located in Warren County had its largest rise in the last span, from 11,517 in 2020 to 13,611 in 2025.
The number of jobs located in Warren County doubled from 1990 to 2025, reaching 13,611, with no dip in any year shown
Smallest rise: 2005 to 2010, reaching 9,236. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Warren County, Iowa.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.8% | 2025 3.2% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 6.8% | 2024 6.6% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $32,635 | 2024 $101,640 |
The table uses 3.2% for 2025; the score uses 3.0% 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 Warren County's history
2000
Lightning in August 2000 killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
A flood in June 2015 did $1 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 52,403, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2022
A tornado in March 2022 did $20 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
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Since 1973
17 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Warren County, 11 of them for flooding. FEMA
Warren County beside its neighbors
All five counties that border Warren County score higher than it does. For the share of income from benefit checks, Warren County ranks 5th of the six; Lucas County is highest, at 28.0%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lucas County, IA | 32 | 14.3% | 28.0% |
| Polk County, IA | 23 | 10.2% | 16.5% |
| Clarke County, IA | 12 | 10.9% | 26.0% |
| Madison County, IA | 4 | 6.4% | 18.7% |
| Marion County, IA | 4 | 9.8% | 19.9% |
| Warren County, IA | 3 | 6.6% | 16.9% |
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 Warren County the poorest county in Iowa?
No, Warren County's poverty rate was 6.6% in 2024, 96th 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, Warren County ranks 86th of 99 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Warren 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 Warren 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 Warren County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.