Wayne County, Iowa

County Distress Index: Normal · 43.7 | 6,557 people · 17th most distressed in Iowa
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Wayne County, IA falls within the normal range for household financial distress at 43.7 — 2109th nationally out of 3144 counties. The primary driver is Income & Poverty, where poverty rates are high and household incomes lag well behind state and national medians. Within Iowa, it ranks 17th of 99 counties. Among its 7 neighboring counties, 4 show more distress.

The Numbers Behind the Score

The CDI measures five domains of financial distress. Wayne County's primary driver is Income & Poverty at 69.8 — above the national median.

Income & Poverty Primary driver 69.8
Poverty Rate 59
Income vs. State Median 80
Child Poverty Rate 70
Community Vulnerability 59.2
Uninsured Rate 80
Disability Rate 39
Employment & Wages 38.9
Unemployment Rate 27
Wage-to-Rent Ratio 20
Business Formation Rate 70
Debt & Delinquency 26.8
Debt in Collections 29
Medical Debt 47
Student Loan Delinquency 32
Auto Loan Delinquency 5
Credit Card Delinquency 8
Bankruptcy Filing Rate 39
Housing Cost Burden 23.6
Rent-Burdened (30%+) 21
Severely Rent-Burdened (50%+) 32
Mortgage-Burdened (30%+) 23
Homeownership Rate 18
Rent-to-Income Ratio 23

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

Neighbors and Peers

How Wayne County compares to its 7 neighboring counties and population peers.

Neighboring Counties

County Score Zone vs. Wayne County
Wayne County, IA 43.7 Normal —
Appanoose County, IA 58.0 Elevated +14.3
Decatur County, IA 51.8 Elevated +8.1
Lucas County, IA 49.3 Normal +5.6
Putnam County, MO 47.5 Normal +3.8
Clarke County, IA 40.9 Normal -2.7
Mercer County, MO 40.0 Normal -3.7
Monroe County, IA 34.9 Healthy -8.8

Population Peers

County Score Zone vs. Wayne County
Liberty County, MT 43.7 Normal +0.1
Blaine County, NE 43.6 Normal -0.1
Sheridan County, MT 43.6 Normal -0.1
Cloud County, KS 43.8 Normal +0.1
Swift County, MN 43.5 Normal -0.1

Download Data

Export all distress indicators for Wayne County as a CSV file.

Find Help in Wayne County

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Iowa State Bar Association Lawyer Referral 515-243-3179

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Frequently Asked Questions

  • What is the distress score for Wayne County, Iowa?

    Wayne County has a County Distress Index score of 43.7 out of 100, placing it in the Normal zone. It ranks 2,109th nationally out of 3,144 counties and 17th in Iowa out of 99 counties.

  • What drives financial distress in Wayne County?

    The primary driver of distress in Wayne County is Income & Poverty, where the county scores 69.8 out of 100. This domain is measured by indicators including Poverty Rate, Income vs. State Median, Child Poverty Rate.

  • How does Wayne County compare to neighboring counties?

    Wayne County (43.7) can be compared to its 7 neighboring counties: Appanoose County, IA (58.0); Decatur County, IA (51.8); Lucas County, IA (49.3).

  • How is the County Distress Index calculated?

    The County Distress Index uses percentile-rank averaging across five domains: Debt & Delinquency, Income & Poverty, Housing Cost Burden, Employment & Wages, and Community Vulnerability. Each county's indicators are ranked against all 3,144 U.S. counties. A score of 50 means the county is at the national median; higher scores indicate greater distress.

  • What is the population of Wayne County?

    Wayne County, Iowa has a population of approximately 6,557 (2023 Census estimate), classified as a tiny county.